Latest Forex news

2010-08-11T14:37:00.000-07:00

Metatrader Expert Advisor Forex EA 90% Highly Profitable:

This EA is using ...

This EA is using the Risk Reward Ratio 5:1 , and the inputs tab hasn't got to many variables . Also take a look at the Largest loss trade and the largest profit trade in the report tab at the end of this video . Anyway its a Old strategy :) with very few trades :) by the age of 80 you'll achive what you look for :)

i got free EA... ...

i got free EA... 87% real wins

I'm so sick of all ...

I'm so sick of all these "expert advisors" . . . they only work well in demo, but when it comes to live they always loose money in the long run. So far I've bought FapTurbo $139 and "Royal Trader" from FRWC's website aka "Fusion V" for $999 and its worthless. FapTurbo actually works alright at least it "brakes even" and thats with FapTurboExpertGuide mind You $77! Meanwhile Fusion V settings are such crap they tell You to turn off auto MM and run 0.01, and even that loses money. Trade manually.

your a scalper

i don't want to pay ...

i don't want to pay for forex robots, there is a free one if anybody interested

I am not sure if he ...

I am not sure if he has a website...but you can always search his name on Google if you need more details

hi what is his ...

hi what is his website?

where can we get ...

where can we get this best Forex Expert Advisor Thanx

better try for free ...

better try for free my money making guide: tnij. org/money-system i made $3900 last month

There is a ...

There is a bulgarian guy name Kiril Kartunov he has the best Forex Expert Advisor. He won $40,000 winning automated forex trading competition turning his $10,000 to $165,000 within 3 months. I think he is the best damn of all time even this year competition he is leading the trade

A new robot coming ...

A new robot coming out in December 2009 called 4xGreed gonna be hot. They are only releasing 1000 copies.. Live stats also posted for your review.

it's too good to be ...

it's too good to be truth insn't ? you would be newest warrant buffet on the investment market....

It's now September ...

It's now September 2009. How does this EA perform now?

Caution! Get the ...

Caution! Get the real IvyBot Review at: ivybot-review-guide.blogspot(DOT)com IvyBot is the #1 Rated Forex Robot!

Caution! Get the ...

Caution! Get the real IvyBot Review at: ivybot-review-guide.blogspot(DOT)com IvyBot is the #1 Rated Forex Robot!

I agree. Has ...

I agree. Has anyone tried this out yet? originalturtletrader [dot] com I think this is a realistic EA that will work long term

If your making that ...

If your making that much that fast you are way over-leveraged and eventually your ea will blow-out your account. Also, if it really worked that good with a 10k balance, you would have all the money in the world in less that five years...???

I can show you an ...

I can show you an EA that makes 100:1 profitable trades over an extended period of time.

most of the people ...

most of the people reading this probably don't know that you can write your own EA and probably beat this nutcase.

Hi, Can you please ...

Hi, Can you please call me @ (818)909-9995 to help me install an EA onto the Metatrader 4? I can never do it right. Thanks for your help. I can call you back. Thanks, Jim

Based on my last ...

Based on my last post, I've read scores of reviews from traders using Dealing Desk brokers as these are the most common ones that support MT4 platfroms, and they all say exactly the same thing, no matter which broker they are referring to. All of these brokers scam the traders using all kinds of clever tactics designed to make you lose your money. Keep in mind that you are trading AGAINST them, and when you win they have to pay you, and visa versa. Cappiche? ECN brokers are the only remedy.

yNeville is quite ...

yNeville is quite correct. The exact reason why this EA, or any EA for that fact works A LOT different in live trading compared to back testing, is due to shady Dealing Desk brokers who only make their money by scamming traders via manipulating the spread, and other deliberate activities, such as causing slippage, red flagging your account, not paying you, etc. The only way around these problem is to use an ECN type broker, but with them you'll pay a set rate on all trades. i.e. $6+.

sorry indikator ...

sorry indikator winning solution system its true or not help.

probably because ...

probably because the trader you're trading through uses a dealing desk and is basically ripping you off.

big deal, 42k from ...

big deal, 42k from 10k after some 32months....90% wins, ok. A whole 10% a month.....kind of lousy compared to both the old FAPS and new Fap Turbo ive been using. Over 1 year trading with a 93.4 win ratio and what turns out to be 29.1% gain/ month.....No idea how much you payed but there are definantlly better performing robots out there.

2010-08-11T14:18:00.000-07:00

Make BIG MONEY in Forex Currency Markets:

"Day Trading Forex Currency Markets is a Quick and real way to make BIG MONEY on the Internet!"

Finally you have FOUND IT!

Make a FORTUNE each month...
... every month!
100% ON AUTOPILOT

Are you fed up with being short of MONEY all the time?
Do you DREAM about a MAGNIFICENT HOUSE and a BIG CAR?
Would you like to BECOME RICH and have A FORTUNE IN YOUR BANK ACCOUNT?
YES - a FORTUNE!
Day trading forex currency allows anybody to EARN THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS in
an extremely short time.
START MAKING MONEY NOW!
Forex is the 'Last Frontier' for Individual Investors - Don't Get Left Behind!
Individual investors are fleeing the stock market and are flocking to the Forex currency market because of its massive size and tremendous liquidity.

FOREX is open 24 hours per day... six days per week...

According to the Bank of International Settlements (BIS), the Forex currency market trades roughly $3.2 trillion per day as money moves around the world... changing from EUROS to DOLLARS to YEN to FRANCS... on and on, making it the largest and most liquid market in the world.
Think about that... $3.2 trillion per day. That's 33 times the size of the New York Stock Exchange and the NASDAQ... combined!
Because of its sheer size, liquidity, and speed... even tiny fluctuations in the currency markets can result in staggering profits.
The FOREX market is so big -- and so liquid -- even tiny, almost imperceptible moves can result in million-dollar profits, literally overnight.
FOREX currency trading gives ordinary individual investors the unprecedented opportunity to amass a fortune, regardless of how risky the stock market gets.
In fact, FOREX has become the "last frontier" of the investment world... and the ONLY PLACE where an individual investor can start day trading forex currency in the FOREX market with a small stake as little as $500... and quickly amass a seven-figure fortune.
Anyone who ignores the Forex currency markets could miss out on a fortune! To miss out on the fortune-producing power of day trading forex currency markets would be a big mistake.

All you need is a computer, an Internet connection, and the "IvyBot Forex Trading Robot."

Put the three together, and you've got a formula for wealth most people only dream about.
The "IvyBot Forex Trading Robot" is unlike anything you have ever seen or experienced in the financial world. It is an exciting Day Trading Forex Currency Robot with a single objective... to help turn ordinary individual investors into foreign currency millionaires!
You see, once you hold the "IvyBot Forex Trading Robot" in your hands... making money in the currency markets is almost as simple as turning on your computer.
It is very simple for individual investors (little guys like you and me) to use the "IvyBot Forex Trading Robot" day trading forex currency to make $1,000 per day... $25,000 per month... or even $1 million per year in the FOREX market, it's very realistic.
I can tell you from firsthand experience, there is nothing like the surge of adrenaline you will feel the first time you step into a trade and watch as your account grows $500... $1,000... even $2,500 right before your eyes in a matter of minutes.
As a user of the "IvyBot Forex Trading Robot" you'll be provided with an ongoing flow of trades for potential gains of $2,500 per week... $45,000 per month... even $1 million per year.
The great part is, day trading forex currency is a valuable skill you can learn now with expert guidance and training... and use the rest of your life.
Imagine telling your friends how you made $10,000 off the euro... $15,000 off the British Pound... and $21,5000 off the New Zealand kiwi... all in the same month!
Imagine raking in $125,000... $250,000... even $1 million per year day trading forex currency. Think about what that kind of money would pay for. College tuition... a comfortable retirement... months of travel and leisure... a vacation home or speed boat.
Think you can make that kind of money from the stock market?
The currency market is just about the only market that allows individual investors to walk away with huge fortunes.
To find out how to get get started day trading forex currency using the 'IvyBot Forex Trading Robot' system click the below link now.
"IvyBot Forex Trading Robot" is by far the surest thing around since it does the trading all on autopilot, avoiding the human error.
Well the past week in the Forex World has been just crazy! Copies of IvyBot are flying of the shelves at a record breaking pace. Never before has the Forex World seen this much demand for one product!!

...and the reason is simple, because IvyBot is by far the #1 Forex Trading Robot to date. No other Robot comes close to the package IvyBot is offering.

2010-08-11T14:13:00.000-07:00

3 types of Forex (Foreign exchange) Risk and Exposure

Managing foreign exchange (or forex) risk is essential to successful investment in the forex market.
Foreign exchange exposure or risk can be classified into three types: transaction, economic and translation exposure.
Transaction exposure refers to the extent to which the future cash transactions of the firm may be affected by any changes in the currency exchange rate.
Economic exposure measures the impact of changes in exchange rate on the firm&'s cash flows and earnings.
Translation exposure refers to accounting exposure. It measures the impact of changes in exchange rate on the financial statements of the group of company.
Most companies attempt to minimize the risk of fluctuating exchange rates by using hedging instruments such as Forward Exchange Contracts, Money Market Hedge, Futures, Options and Swaps.

2010-08-11T14:09:00.000-07:00

Five-Minute Periods Forex Trading:

What Is Five-minute Periods Forex Trading?

What exactly is five-minute periods Forex trading? It is a type of Forex trading that involves making trades based on the information in five-minute Forex charts. The object is to piggyback onto the short-term momentum when a currency starts to rise in value. This is done by purchasing the currency when it begins to gain upward momentum and selling it as soon as the momentum slows down.
Investors who take advantage of five-minute periods Forex trading are looking to make a quick profit and get back out of the currency as soon as they have realized the gain they are looking for. Usually, Forex traders who use five-minute charts to determine which currencies to buy will set up a sell order at the same time they buy the currency. When the currency reaches the sell point, the sale order will be executed automatically.

Not for Beginning Forex Investors

Five-minute periods Forex trading is not recommended for beginning investors. This type of trade is riskier than long-term Forex trades. Part of the reason for this is that the commissions in Forex trading are not just a set percentage that is easy to figure and anticipate. The commissions in Forex trading are based on the spread between the bid price and the ask price. Since the commission is not a fixed percentage of the trade, you need to make sure you understand how the commission is figured before making a trade, especially in a short-term transaction. Otherwise, you may find that your profit from the trade is not enough to cover the commission.
Besides an understanding of how commissions are figured, an investor who is thinking about getting involved in five-minute periods Forex trading should learn how to use market indicators to determine which currencies to buy and when to sell them. The indicators that are most commonly used in five-minute Forex trading are the EMA (exponential moving average) and the MACD (moving average convergence divergence). Understanding how to use these two market indicators can help you make better investment decisions when you are doing short-term Forex trades.

2010-08-11T14:04:00.000-07:00

Increase Your Returns and Hedge Your Losses:

Forex option trading is a financial instrument, which serves for both hedging and speculating. In the past, only the large financial institutions would use Forex option trading for hedging. However, this trading option is also available for individual Forex traders. There are advantages and disadvantages to Forex trading, just like any other trading strategy. This is a very liquid financial tool and can be very risky. Forex option buyers are called holders, and option sellers are called granters.

How Does It Work?

A Forex option buyer has a right to exchange a specific amount of currency at an agreed rate at a specific date. The buyer is contracted to pay the seller a premium, before the buyer even purchases the option. This is the only obligation of the buyer. This limits the liability of the buyer. The seller, on the other hand, has two possibilities with Forex option trading - either to buy back the foreign currency contract prior to its expiration date or to hold it until it expires.

So what exactly happens when you buy a Forex option? Essentially, you are opting for a fixed price of the transaction. Forex options have a fixed currency amount with a fixed expiration date, rather than being tied to the markets' fluctuations.

This may seem surprising to new traders, but forex options are not usually exercised. Most of the time the options are not exercised by the option holder; the options are often offset until they expire. If the option does get exercised, a spot position is assigned to the option holder. There is also a small possibility that an option will expire worthless, if the strike price is lower than the purchase price at the expiration date.

As previously mentioned, there is a fixed price assigned to Forex options. The beauty of this caveat is that it offers protection for an option holders capital. If the market takes a turn for the worse, you will not lose all of your capital. But we're not trading the Forex market to limit losses though. Let's focus on how you will profit. When the strike price is higher than your initial purchase price you pocket the difference. However if the strike price is lower than the initial purchase you will incur a loss.

Forex option trading is exclusively availabe in the international markets, because it's a hedging instrument. This strategy is generally risky, but it also generates higher returns when you know what you're doing.

Types of Forex Options

There are two types of options in Forex option trading- call options and put options. Call options give a trader the right to buy currency, and put options give the trader the right tosell currency. Both of these options generally change in response to volatility fluctuations, i.e. if the volatility falls, the prices of both options also fall. There are common and customized Forex options, respectively called "plain vanilla" and exotic.

Trading Guidelines To Get You Started

In order to protect yourself from potential losses, it is better to follow general safety guidelines:

1. Place a small portion of your working capital into your option trading strategy.

2. Limit your trading. Monitor the market and wait for proven signals to enter the market, execute your strategy, and generate your profits.

3. Test out your option trading strategies in your demo account first. As you get a hang of everything and become confident in your option trading strategy, it's time to enter the market.

Forex option trading is an additional Forex trading strategy. In order to become better diversified, you may wish to learn more about Forex option trading in addition to regular Forex trading.

2010-08-11T13:50:00.000-07:00

The Way Out For Every Forex Trade Beginner

one of the most popular and most profitable ways to make money from the internet is by joining the Forex trading. With the advent of the technologies and internet access; the online forex trading system has gained its popularity in the global market. This is probably because it deals with the most liquid asset in the world or because it doesn’t involve much time, money or energy.
Forex trading basically involves the exchange of many foreign currencies. Daily; about 2.5 trillion USD gets exchanged in the market and many people use this medium to feed their families. In the past, only the banks and the financial institutions offered the foreign exchange but now; anyone who has a brain can trade in Forex. Unfortunately; not all traders are making money through Forex; there are those who are constantly run at a loss. They do not take the time to learn how the market moves, so they end up buying currencies that they can not sell or the ones that they would sell at a loss. Due to the high rate of frustration that has risen from the vain efforts of some people; many online platforms have been set up to enable safe and secured money transactions and exchange where anyone can invest and try out the profit mechanism. The forex robot system requires a basic and a fair knowledge in the foreign exchange market so that one can put up individual strategies to make the most of the profit.
Online forex trading system also relates to the mechanical forex trading software programs which are really effective for a novice to place his or her dealings without any prior understanding to the trade market scenario. Profit making gets easier as the software directly calculates and predicts the forthcoming best possible gaining situations.
Some of the strategic forex traders deal on behalf of an individual using the software. The strategies are unique and so designed that the profit maximizing situation is tried out. If you are not an experienced trader who still wants to make money fast with Forex; you should better get on a platform and get a forex robot. You will be glad you did.

2010-08-11T13:28:00.000-07:00

The Major Forex Secret You Need In Order To Hit It BIG

Have you dreamed about making it big via the foreign exchange market? You will be intimated with simple and straight information that will help you with your forex trade. A lot of traders fail to make use of this tips do not be discouraged because so many traders are not making profit.
Do you know that every big bullish Forex trend starts and continues by breaking to new market highs on a chart? Well, that is what happens. The more mature a trend gets, the more it breaks out to new market highs. Anyone who wants to make money BIG in forex should by getting in on the big trends should start by buying breakouts. Most Forex traders do not make much money because they do not buy breakouts. Most of them believe that predicting when a low would occur is the best way to make money in Forex trade. They try to buy into support and predict the start and turn of any trend. What most of them do not know is that the Forex market cannot be predicted! When they make wrong predictions and assumptions; it is only logical for them to lose money.
Making BIG money in Forex would only be possible if you are trend-based. Imagine if you caught just 50% of every major trend; wow, you would never be broke again. You don’t win in Forex by making predictions; you trade a high odds set up and focuses on the profit potential ahead. Breakout trading works, so go for levels that other traders consider as essential and have been tried a few times before the break. Also use one or two momentum indicators to time your entry and you have a robust Forex trading strategy which will always make money.

2010-08-09T12:38:00.001-07:00

My 5 Golden Forex Trading Rules:

As a trader in the forex market, I have come to understand the truth about trading and it mostly has to do with myself and my personality. Taking the time to learn the FX market and developing an awareness of yourself as a trader will aid you tremendously on your very own forex journey. To aid you along the way, I have developed my 5 golden forex trading rules.

1. Having an understanding the currency pairs, including which pairs has the most liquidity and volatility in order to decide when and when not to trade them. I want to know the pairs as well as my brother and that is why I trade just a few pairs.

2. Employing technical analysis to determine past price action to set future targets. I was raised a technician and will let technical analysis be my primary mechanism for trade management.

3. Understanding the market’s psychology and my own, and then incorporating this information as part of my forex trading strategy. Understanding the drivers of the market and my own nuances allows me to sleep in when I am too tired to trade the London session and plan my trading activity, including my daily forex education session, at the times of the day when my mental focus is at its sharpest.

4. Awareness of the fundamentals that will cause a currency pair price action. Knowing current events and anticipated news allows me to trade when the market conditions fit my trading style. This is one of the things I absolutely love about the forex market … you never have to wait long for an opportunity!

5. Risk management and trade execution to ensure my trades can achieve the maximum profit. I don’t want to be greedy and I don’t like to leave money on the table either. I will be trying to master this skill for the rest of my life!

Getting your forex education, practicing in a demo account, becoming aware of your own psychology and being persistent will allow you to succeed in the forex market as well.

2010-08-09T08:15:00.000-07:00

Dollar Stuck Near Multi-Month Lows Monday Morning:8/9/2010

(RTTNews) - The dollar remained under pressure versus other major currencies Monday morning, as a dismal recent stretch has cost the greenback nearly all of its springtime gains against the euro and sterling.

Meanwhile, the dollar hangs on the precipice of falling to a fresh 1995 low against the yen.

Stock futures are pointing slightly higher on Wall Street this morning, following Friday's lackluster session.

Concerns about the US jobs market were validated last week with yet another troubling employment report from the Labor Department.

On Friday, government data showed a larger-than-expected drop in July payrolls.

Looking at today's currency charts, the dollar was on pause versus the euro, holding with a penny of Friday's 3-month low of 1.3333.

The dollar was stuck at 1.5950 versus the sterling, having come within a whisker of 1.6000 for the first time since February.

Against the yen, the buck steadied near Y85.50 after testing its 15-year low of 84.80 late last week.

The Federal Reserve will gather in Washington this week to announce the latest interest rate decision.

Policymakers are expected to keep rates near zero for "an extended period," and signal concerns about the pace of the economic recovery.

2010-08-09T08:07:00.000-07:00

Outlook for Euro Improves But Still Remains Pessimistic:August 9th, 2010

The euro endured hard times this year as the financial crisis in the European Union made us question the very existence of the currency. Therefore, the rally it showed this summer was rather unexpected. The experts expected the rally to end soon, perhaps even this month. Does the outlook changed? Not much, though it became somewhat more bullish.

The bears point out that the countries such as Greece, Spain and Portugal can drag the EU economy to the bottom, causing the European shared currency to collapse. The good example of such viewpoint is the words of editor of the Gartman Letter:

The euro has had a spectacular bounce. Were all of the problems that were attendant and discussed and so obvious in February, March and April of this year, have they been alleviated? Not even slightly. The major trend for the euro is still toward disintegration.

The bulls say that the European economy more stable than perceived. Jean-Claude Trichet, the President of the European Central Bank, tries very hard to support such point of view, stating that “the available data for the third quarter are better than expected” and ”the market is functioning a little bit better”. The growth of the services and manufacturing industries in Europe and the strong Germany’s economy can be considered evidences of the improving economic situation in the EU. The IMF is planning to provide the next part (€9 billion) of the promised €750 billion bailout as Greece is performing measures to reduce the budget according to the agreement.
Despite all the good signs, and even as the US is becoming next major reason for the concerns, the sentiment among the economists still remains pessimistic for the euro. The rally may end any time and the speculations persist about the possible parity with the US dollar or even the disintegration of the 16-nation currency. The forecast were revised upward but the euro still expected to decline versus the greenback to 1.22 by the end of this year.
If you want to comment on the euro’s recent action or have any questions regarding this currency, please, feel free to reply below.

2010-08-09T08:02:00.000-07:00

NZ Dollar Drops as Central Bank:August 9th, 2010

The New Zealand dollar fell today after the report showed that the house prices increased with slower pace, causing the speculation that the central bank wouldn’t raise the interest rates next month. The house prices in New Zealand grew 4.1 percent in July from a year earlier, following the growth by 5.2 percent in the previous month. The Reserve Bank of New Zealand announced, after it raised the key rate to 3 percent last month, that the slower economic growth prompts to slow the pace of the rates’ increases.
NZD/USD dropped from 0.7336 to 0.7313 today as of 9:58 GMT.
If you want to comment on the New Zealand dollar’s recent action or have any questions regarding this currency, please, feel free to reply below.

2010-08-09T07:28:00.000-07:00

1 South Korean won = 0.000862 U.S. dollars:August 9th, 2010

The South Korean won extended its rally for yet another day as the anticipation that the central bank would raise the interest rates increased the appeal of the currency. The central bank increased the borrowing costs by the quarter percentage point on July 9 from the record low level of 2 percent. The forecasts promise the consumer prices in South Korea to rise by 2.8 percent in 2010, up from the previous estimates of 2.6 increase. The analysts say that the inflation pressure alone should push the won up even without the rates hike.
USD/KRW fell from 1,161.20 to 1,160.00 as of 9:18 GMT today.
If you want to comment on the South Korean won’s recent action or have any questions regarding this currency, please, feel free to reply below.

2010-08-08T11:25:00.000-07:00

Australian Dollar Momentum and Sentiment Point to Gains:8/8/2010

The Australian Dollar finished the week near multi-month highs against its downtrodden US namesake, bolstered by similar strength in the S&P 500 and general financial market risk sentiment. Consistently strong Australian economic data served to bolster the currency further, and it seems that fundamental trends point to continued AUD gains. A comparatively empty economic calendar in the week ahead should theoretically mean slower currency price moves, but traders should watch out for any noteworthy surprises in upcoming Australian Employment Change results.

The Australian Dollar finds itself in a position of strength amidst solid fundamental trends and bullish sentiment amidst global financial markets. In fact, forex options markets’ three-month volatility expectations for the AUDUSD have fallen to their lowest levels since early May—at which point the AUDUSD traded near $0.9300. Given that the Australian Dollar boasts a fairly significant yield advantage versus the US Dollar and other counterparts, the promise of low currency volatility encourages speculators to buy the AUD on the assumption that interest rate payments will offset any potential currency depreciation. Of course financial markets are very fickle, and any significant deterioration in risk sentiment could easily shift expectations and force noteworthy AUDUSD pullbacks.

Barring a substantive shift in market sentiment, market dynamics favor further Aussie dollar strength. Traders should monitor any and all surprises in the upcoming Australian Employment Change report, but it may take a fairly large disappointment to truly derail economic outlook for the antipodean economy. It will otherwise be critical to watch the trajectory of the S&P 500 and similar asset classes. The index initially took a dive following relatively disappointing US employment data, but a quick recovery through later trade suggests that bulls have some fight left in them. Whether the index continues to press higher may be the most important factor in determining the direction of the highly risk-sensitive Australian Dollar.

2010-08-08T04:19:00.000-07:00

Forex: What the Experts Don't Tell You:

There is a lot of money to be made in Forex investing. What few people realize is that 90% of investors will lose money. Most of these are new investors who started ‘wrong.’ Forex is speculation. There are no hard fast rules. No guru can give investors an edge. There are no secrets. Forex trading is simple ‘math based’ speculation.

The Foundation of Forex Trading

Investors need three things to start trading in the Forex markets: Education, Strategy, Patience. The education is the hardest to find. Many of the books and short courses on the internet offer just enough education to get started, but not enough to avoid problems. The secret to success in the Forex world is not knowing how to trade, but when to stop trading.
A good trader learns three or four good strategies, and practice them using ‘training’ or ‘demo’ accounts for weeks until they start to ‘feel’ the patterns. However, do a good review of the different online broker houses. The demo accounts, and the actually trading accounts, are built on different platforms. Some strategies will stop working when the platform changes.

Main foreign exchange market turnover, 1988 - 2007, measured in billions of USD

Understandig Forex Strategy

There is no ‘beginner’s strategy.’ A lot of courses and books treat scalping as a beginner’s strategy, suggesting that a trader can work ‘up to’ a real trading account. The purpose for this is to reduce the risk, in an effort to sell the services, and then promise big returns later.
This is not how the Forex market works. Most people have one strategy and trading system that works for them. There is no ‘best’ strategy. This is why it is important to study as many different strategies as possible. Experimentation is the key to finding the perfect one.
The most important thing that the gurus overlook is that investors will lose more trades than they make. The second fact the gurus overlook is that the entry signals and entry points are rarely right. That is why most trades fail, and experience is paramount to success.

Forex Education

The level of skill needed before starting to trade is relative. One investor will have a basic understanding of the terms. Another will be able to write a white paper on different terms and strategies. Unfortunately, many investors start trading before they understand the full impact of terms like resistance, or spreads.
Education should never stop. Spend a few hours reading every week. Subscribe to the industry periodicals. And, stay active in the forums.
A good benchmark would be to start trading after you reach the following points:

Can explain the typical pip spread for your currencies
Have tested the markets around the world and found the best time of day to trade
Create a list of 10 trading terms and be able to explain their effect on your currency pairs and strategy. (Extend this list beyond leverage, Margins, Resistance, Signals, Pips)
Have developed a Risk Management Strategy
Have accumulated enough cash to invest – safely
Have tested your exit strategy against the Leverage, and reduce the chance of losing
Have worked on your strategy until you win a larger portion of trades than you lose.

Forex Trading Tools

There are several powerful trading tools. Beginners should start with a software program that lets them establish their trading strategies, with enter and exit points, and then run several months worth of trades at one time.
Other vital tools include ‘Real Time Economic Event’ and ‘Resistance Tables.’ These let new traders test their strategies against real world ‘off trading’ factors, such as an economic down turn, sporting events, or the weather.

Online Brokers for Forex

Not all brokers are the same. Do not pay attention to the reviews that are probably paid for. Overlook the fancy aspects of their websites. The best way to find the best broker is to sign up with the associations and forums. Talk with other traders. Find successful traders who have the same budget, skill levels, strategies, and goals. Ask them about their brokers. One broker will stand out from the crowd after a few weeks.
Do not overlook certification or compliance to government regulations. Many of the brokers are located in Europe, they are not bound by the laws and regulations of the USA or UK.

Forex Trading Packages

These can be the biggest obstacle for a new trader. There are many different packages. Each broker has different fees, and charges. Do not be fooled by the ‘no commission.’ The broker does take a few pips. The trader will not see this on their trading sheet. This is the difference between the purchase and sale price.
The ‘Spread’ can be as little as 2 or 3 pips to as much as 10 pips. Read the small print. Several things can change the spread including the currency pairs, size of the trade, and the account. This brings up another problem.
Many brokers promote starter packages where traders can invest less than $100 on a trade. This may look like a good way to start, but there are many disadvantages. The spreads may be higher reducing the investor’s profit margin. These trades may also be considered high risk. Before signing up with one of these, look for clauses that may leave the investor losing money on more trades than they win.

Covering The Margin

One of the most important aspect should be the broker’s handling of a trade gone bad. Brokers have a different treatment when their investors cannot Cover The Margin. This can vary between brokers, and packages. The investor should clearly understand how their ‘bad trades’ will be handled. Will the broker contact the investor before closing the trade and causing a loss? Will they exit the trade without the investor’s knowledge? Do they have alerts? These questions are vital to an investor’s success.
There is nothing worse than waking up in the morning to learn that a currency dropped in the night, and the broker exited the trade, costing the investor thousands of dollars. Some trades rely on buying volatile currencies, when they are diving, and waiting until they balance. This type of trading will not succeed if the broker’s policy is too strict.
The best solution is to make sure there is always enough money in the account to Cover The Spread when a trade does drop. The traditional solution is to learn how to use exit strategies. This is imperative, but do not trust exit strategies alone.

High Levels of Leveraging in Forex Trading

Forex offers much higher leverages than other speculative investing. The collateral the investor can deposit is called the Margin. This can be leveraged up to 200%, depending on the broker and account size. This can lead to a substantial loss, and even owing the broker money. Most investors believe that leveraging is a Joint Venture between the broker and the investor. This is not true. Leveraging is the equivalent to a loan.
This is one aspect of Forex trading that many courses and gurus, skim over in their attempt to keep new investors motivated.

Realistic Forex Trading

Trading is not easy. It is not a hobby. To trade successfully an investor needs to be online constantly, at the same time, in the same markets. Consistency is the only way to learn how to see the subtle fluctuations that signal currency movements.
The gurus are only part of an investor’s journey for a short time. They have no long term investment and risk little. A successful investor has the heart of an entrepreneur. They boldly take what they can from each guru, venue, and trade, using each to reach their ultimate goals.
The secret to success is not found in the ability to track trends, or in a sixth sense. The secret to successful Forex trading is found in learning how to trade around the risk, and increase profits by learning to patiently ride the risk to lucrative trades.

2010-08-08T04:17:00.000-07:00

I Want to Make Millions Trading Forex with a $100 Deposit

Forex Trading With No Emotion

Not a long ago I had lost my initial deposit plus profit trading forex, it took me 3 days to make $600 profit from my initial $300 deposit, but the sad thing about my first investment into forex trading is that I lost all the $600 in just 5 minutes.
I was discourage after this loss but I had never given on trading forex, from my initial mistakes am back to correct them and make millions from my $100 deposit I did on 4 May 7, 2010. It took only 2 days for the deposit to reflect in my trading account and now am ready to go the marathon

Mistakes that make me loose $600
As this was first time to trade forex, it was full of emotions; I would start and stop trading based on my feeling of losing money. So here is how emotion played when you just get started trading forex. When you are losing trades you hung on hoping that the negatives would turn into positive regardless of how the technical indicators are moving, with this hope I lost almost all the trades place. Emotion played itself when wining trades also and here what’s happen.

Account Balance after first Trade

When just getting started and you are making profits, you rush closing all the open trade positions fearing of loosing small profit you have made. I ended up taking small profit and closing position. As you can see in the two scenarios I was making big losses hoping that they turn into big profits while taking small profit fearing that they would turn into losses. I learned this hard and bitter way and am not going to repeat this to make the millions from $100 deposit
Am trading small lots so as to increase my capital base to enable me trade big lots, so for the $100 deposit am starting with 0.01 lot size, no more emotion and patients is the key to my making millions with a $100 deposit.

First Trading Statement

2010-08-08T04:14:00.001-07:00

Forex: The Safe Way To Get Started Is Forex Trading Online

The world’s economy runs on a platform of investing and trading currency. A small investor may feel that investing in currency is a SCAM designed to rip them off, but that is only because they do not fully understand the positive impact their investments will have on the global economy.
No currency is traded in the Forex markets. But, currency is held in escrow. This works similar to your current savings accounts. You deposit money into your bank account. The bank uses it to invest. In return you earn a few pennies on the dollar.
Forex trading online lets individual investors step out of this ‘passive’ trading role, and trade through their own broker accounts, keeping all the profits.

What Are The Financial Markets?

Financial markets let people buy and sell financial products. Organizations use this currency to do business in different countries. Individuals trade to profit from price fluctuations. These fluctuations happen daily. The currency value increases and decreases, sometimes within seconds, between currency pairs. Currency is not traded against a commodity such as gold. It is traded in pairs, against the value of another currency.
One currency may have several values, at one time, against other currencies. The value of a currency has nothing to do with the exchange rate at the local bank. The fluctuations are caused by supply and demand. The currencies market is the largest, in terms of quantity traded a day.

Main foreign exchange market turnover, 1988 - 2007, measured in billions of USD.

The Currencies Market: Foreign Exchange Market, FX market, or Forex

The Currencies market goes by several names: Foreign Exchange Market, FX market, or Forex. There are two types of traders on the Forex market. The first group are the banks and companies that must trade to do business. They would convert their profits in one country, to another countries currency. Converting through the central bank will cost too much, so these entities trade through the Forex market. The second group are individual traders who speculate on the market and trade in the hopes of earning a market, often single traders forex trading online from home.
To the uninitiated, this second group may seem like a type of parasite. However, they are a vital element of the market that lends to the success of many currencies around the world. The value of a currency depends on many factors including the country’s economic health, interest rates, employment rates, and the amount traded.
Financial market prices fluctuate due to supply and demand. If there was not enough demand, many of the world’s currencies would be lower. This is where the individual investors come in. The UK economy is currently suffering terribly, as is the USA economy. However, individual traders who are forex trading online have speculated so much on the currencies that they have remained strong and not bottomed out, like the Canadian currency did a decade ago.
Currency values are influenced by several global factors including economic, politics, weather, war, natural disaster, even ‘gossip and rumors.' In 1971, the world markets allowed the world's currency exchange rates to fluctuate.

Low Risk Forex Start Up Strategies

There are several ways to enter the Forex trading online world without risking your capital. The most popular is a service such as gnutrade.com, or a broker’s software, which allows you to do forex trading online without using real money. Several forex trading services and software subscriptions let traders practice in the real Forex market, with real second-by-second data. The two main types are ones that let traders run months of trades within a few minutes. The second works on ‘real time’ with the markets.
Each of these systems let investors test different strategies and methodologies without using legal currency. The user can also learn how to track the news feeds and watch how the simplest news report, or editorial can impact a currency pair. It makes forex trading online safe for beginners.

Practice Makes Perfect

The reason investors need to spend a few months trading, daily, in non currency accounts is to help train the investor to Read the Markets. Traders conducting forex trading online must be able to use fundamental, technical, and quantitative analysis to control their trading decisions. There is no room for hunches or luck in the Forex markets. Some trades happen so fast that the positions have opened and closed, based on the investor’s pre-determined strategy signals. Sometimes this happens before the investor is aware of it.
The first step is to subscribe to several different Forex news feeds and read the news every day. There will be no obvious correlation between the reports and the news at first. As the weeks pass, traders will start seeing a relationship.
The second step is to pick one or two pairs, and one market. Trade the same currency, with the same strategy, at the same time every day, on the same markets, and the same currency pairs. With forex trading online it is possible to set up more than one demo account and compare the results of different trades, strategies, and entry or exit positions.
Step three is to establish entry and exit positions that will increase profits and reduce risk. This cannot be done until you feel secure in a single strategy and working between two or three currency pairs. This can take experimentation and exploration.
1. How much can I risk?
2. Do I have the nerve to trade in a volatile market?
3. Outline the logic behind entering a trade.
4. Do I have enough skill to understand whether the assumptions/logic behind a forex trade are/is correct or wrong?

Picking A Forex Broker

The choice of online forex broker or trading company can limit the risk involved. It is important to realize that there is always risk involved. Everyone expects to lose trades. Winning 30% of trades is a good average. Most entry points are wrong. The best strategy makes use of expectations. Some traders feel this is a useless concept. Learning how to trade with different expectations against two systems will reduce risk.
A trader who'd forex trading online needs to pick strategies, trades, and have an idea of their leveraging and margins before picking a broker. Some strategies will favor a forex broker who may use higher spreads, but are more lenient when a trade threatens to deplete the margin. Other forex brokers be incredibly strict on the margins, but they offer narrower spreads.

Opening a Forex Trading Online Live Account

The most important question is, “Am I ready for a live Forex account.” Many traders enter the market before they are ready. Their emotions get the better of them. Instead of focusing on educating themselves, they start to focus on the money they would have made if they’d been trading live. The ‘itch’ to start earning a profit starts to wear away their logic and common sense.
Forcing yourself to stay in training, and continue to learn, is part of the training process. Forex traders need nerves of steel. They need to hold their positions as the markets fluctuate, especially if they employ a long-term strategy.
There are several ways to determine answer the question, “Am I ready for a live Forex account.”
1. Do I have enough capital to invest safely?
2. Will my ‘exit’ positions protect my capital?
3. Have I balanced my investment-stake against the risk?
4. Can I rebuild my stake in a few months?
5. Am I winning an average, or above average level of trades?
6. Can I afford to lose my stake?

Networking With Other Forex Traders

One of the best ways to reduce to Limit The Risk is to network with other traders. Do not be drawn to the big names. Look for places where new traders discuss their frustrations, what works, and who talks about resources.
There is no such thing as risk free trading. This does not mean that the concept of forex trading online without losing the stake, and without profit is not a realistic expectation. It is all a numbers game. Learn the subtle nuances of the game, and you’ll reduce the risk, and increase the profits.

2010-08-08T04:10:00.000-07:00

Forex Trading - Another Way to Earn Profits Using Your Wits

tasty money (Photo courtesy by oskay from Flickr)

Introduction to Forex

What is forex?
The term ‘forex' is a nickname for Foreign Exchange market. The forex market is the largest market in the world because it has a volume of over $4 trillion a day; while the New York Stock Exchange only has $25 billion. A 10-digit figure is very big, indeed. Other names for this giant include: FX, FOREX, Retail forex, Spot FX or Spot.
Because the foreign exchange market is actually a cash market backed by large banks from all over the world, different foreign currencies are involved in the forex trading. Theoretically, the fx trade is a ‘spread' - where one must sell a currency to buy another.

Euros and US Dollars. (Photo courtesy by Kiva.Dang from Flickr)

FX market, like the stock market, is basically involved in trading. It is a continuous process of buying and selling currencies. Its main objective is to exchange one currency for another-with the expectation that the price of the currency bought will gain value that is higher than the currency sold.
Here's an example of earning profits thru buying euros:

First, purchase 10,000 euros at exchange rate of 1.18 for EUR/USD
After 2 weeks, exchange 10,000 euros back to US dollars at exchange rate 1.2500 to earn $700

How to Make Money in Foreign Currencies

Exchange Rates from Newspaper. (Photo courtesy by Kiran Kumar PY Pilly from Flickr)

What is an exchange rate? This term refers to the ratio of one currency valued against another currency.
Example: USD/CHF - indicates how many US dollars needed to purchase 1 Swiss franc, or vice versa.

Scalping in Forex Trade

There are a lot of things to learn about forex trading - but here are the initial important stuff to study:

Reading FX quote
Base currency
Long and short (long means buy; short means sell)
Bid and ask
Spread
Margin trading
Demo trading
Fibonacci
Candlesticks
Charts
Indicators

However, you must not plunge into fx trading without undergoing a demo trade for at least 6 months. Combine the hands-on practice with studying everything about forex thru reading online information. One good site for beginners in forex is the Babypips' School of Pipsology.
DO NOT trade with a live account without making sure that you already have all necessary skills to trade successfully.
A successful trader has honed these 3 abilities:

Make pips
Keep pips
Repeat making and keeping pips

Learn the basics of forex trading. (Photo courtesy by ssufian from Flickr)

Always REMEMBER, you shall be putting your hard-earned money at stake whenever you trade in the fx market-so be smart and patient. Never be greedy. This is one of the golden rules of forex trading.

2010-08-08T04:05:00.000-07:00

Forex Currency Trading | Easily Understanding the USD/CAD

Forex Currency Trading Basics for USD/CAD

This article is an introduction to forex currency trading for USD/CAD - the US dollar and Canadian dollar exchange. In order to establish a sufficient introduction, we need to start by talking about the forex market as a whole.
This first section will be devoted to talking about how the forex market works, how it's different from other trading markets and the advantages to the forex market. Then we'll move on to talking about forex currency trading for USD/CAD in particular.
Before we start, I should mention that forex currency trading is a very risky endeavor and should be taken on with extreme caution. You should get expert advice from a financial professional before you begin trading.

CNBC Real Millionaire Trader

Forex Currency Trading Basics

Forex Currency Trading USD/CAD

Forex Currency Trading Basics

What is It?

To get a grasp on the forex currency trading basics, we must first look at the forex market as a whole. The forex market is the same as any other market, it's a place to buy and sell goods and services.
Think of it as those ancient markets where people came together to trade goods, haggle and bargain over prices, with buyers, sellers, and middlemen. Except the forex market is not a physical location. It's a virtual, electronic world where everything is done on computers on virtual platforms that are all connected to each other.
The forex market is what we call over-the-counter (OTC), which basically means that you trade directly over an electronic platform instead of an exchange like the NYSE or CBOT. There are many advantages to this that I'll go into later.
The forex market is the largest and fastest growing market in the world with a trading volume anywhere from $3.21 trillion PER DAY according to the Bank for International Settlements.
Compared with the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) which turns over an average of $87 billion in daily trading volume according to the World Federation of Exchanges 2006, the forex market is about 36 times the size of the NYSE. The forex market is a very large market with benefits that I'll go into later.

Market Players - Who trades in forex markets?

The major players in this market that trade the currency pairs and effect the markets are currency traders in corporations, financial institutions, and for personal use.

#1 - Tourists and Other Personal Currency Exchanges

Most people have been to other countries where they had to exchange their home currencies to the local currency so they can travel and spend money. And most people have used or at least come across those kiosks at airports that will take your US dollar (USD) and exchange it for the local currency.
Although these kiosks and banks and other retail currency exchange places base their rate on the general forex market, they set it themselves with a mark up to take a cut of that exchange.

#2 - Companies Doing Foreign Trade

When a company that manufactures products in Japanese exports their products to the US, they do it by selling it to US companies. The Japanese product was manufactured using the Japanese currency - the yen, and it is being bought by the US.
One of several things happen. The US company buys the Japanese product in US dollars and then the Japanese company converts it into the yen to pay for making more product in their country, pay it's workers, pay it's taxes, etc.
Or, the US company first exchanges the USD into the yen and pays for it in yen. Or, the Japanese company will receive USD, keep it in USD for other international transactions.
The forex currency exchange rate significantly affects foreign trade. If, for example, the Japanese yen becomes stronger compared with the USD, Japanese products will become more expensive to buy for Americans.
Why? Because the USD won't buy as much Japanese yen as it used to. This of course will lead to a decrease in exports out of Japan. That is why China pegs it's currency, the yuan, and keeps it low compared to the USD.
As long as they keep their currency weaker than it's supposed to be, they will keep their exports into the US high and prices of their good low in USD. Most of these forex traders use other derivative financial instruments like currency futures to hedge against the risks of currency fluctuations, which will not be discussed in this article.
As you can imagine, there is an enormous amount of foreign trade that occurs on a daily basis, and a lot of ensuing currency trading must take place for this foreign trading to happen. However, the fact is, only 5% of daily forex market volume comes from companies doing foreign trade.
Granted 5% of $3.21 trillion is still $160 billion a day in currency trading volume, but it is still relatively low if you look at daily trading volume as a whole. If only 5% of currency trading is done because of foreign trade, then where does the other 95% of trading come from?

#3 - Speculators

If 5% of forex currency trader volume is for foreign trade purposes, the other 95% of the forex currency trading volume that is left comes from the activity of speculators, i.e. people and institutions trying to make a profit from currency trading. Currency trading is one way Goldman Sachs was able to emerge back into profitability after nearly imploding back in the fall.
Some speculators are merely average joes sitting in their home offices and trading on their own accounts. Many of these start out trading on forex demo accounts to practice their trading skills.

Speculators as Forex Trader

Among the 95% of forex currency trades done by speculators, there are many that act as a forex trader in the forex market.

#1 - Central Banks

Central banks play a pivotal role in how the forex market behaves. The news media tends to focus on stock market reactions to central bank announcements and actions, but the forex market takes it's cues from central banks as well.
The central banks main concern is the monetary system of their country and tries to control the currencies inflation (value of money going down, i.e. it costs more to buy stuff) and deflation (duh, the value of the currency going up and things getting too cheap to buy).
Central banks play a balancing act trying to keep these two factors in check so that it doesn't become too volatile, while keeping their country's economy growing. They have tons of influence over their economies and the economy of the world, so the forex trader needs to pay close attention to what they're up to.
Central banks will sometimes buy and sell their currencies on the forex market themselves to stabilize the market. It's called central bank intervention.
Sometimes central banks will talk about intervening and sometimes it'll work to stabilize the market enough to make the difference the central bankers are looking for. But catch is that if the central banks do this too much, they run the risk of the forex market ignoring them in the long run.
The Central Bank of Canada is currently running this risk with the USD/CAD. The Central Bank of Canada is concerned that the USD/CAD (the CAD has become stronger) has declined so far that it might limit the growth of the Canadian economy, i.e. it'll be too expensive for other countries, especially the US, to buy Canadian products, especially commodities. (On a side note, Canadian commodities are crucial to the USD/CAD forex market, but that'll be discussed later).
In an effort to weaken the CAD so that exports will be cheaper and more competitive globally, the Central Bank of Canada and the Finance Ministry of Canada is talking about doing something to weaken the CAD.
The caveat is that the Central Bank of Canada didn't do anything when the USD/CAD was almost at par, i.e. it cost about 1 USD to buy 1 CAD last year. Additionally, according to Sean Hyman, the writer of the article linked above, the Central Bank of Canada hasn't done anything to intervene since 1998.

#2 - Commercial and Investment Banks

These are the big dogs of forex currency trading. They do a bulk of the speculating, and they usually do a darn good job at it. Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan, Morgan Stanley, Merrill Lynch and Deutsche Bank are some of the big investment banks that make billions every year on forex currency trading.
There are two primary ways commercial and investment banks make money from forex currency trading. They trade currencies on behalf of their clients as part of a forex account or comprehensive asset management portfolio that includes forex currency trading as a component of the portfolio of investments.
The other way these commercial and investment banks make money is by trading their own money. Commercial and investment banks have a unique advantage in this regard. In addition to the normal technical and fundamental analysis that every forex trader must make, they also get the unique perspective of seeing trades executed by central banks and large hedge funds.
Because of the extremely high trading volume and liquidity of the forex market, no one single bank or fund can significantly move the forex market using raw cash power like in other markets. However, if a number of the central banks and large hedge funds are buying or selling a particular currency, it could signal a trend in that currency that the commercial or investment bank could capitalize on.

#3 - Hedge Funds

Hedge funds have become an important factor in all aspects of the economy and financial markets. In addition to being a major play in forex markets, they have incredible sway in other financial markets like the stock market and commodities market that can also influence the movement of the forex market.
For example, the record breaking oil prices of recent history was most likely caused by aggressive hedge funds that were seeking to drive oil prices up to make a profit. Of course it wreaked havoc on us all by drastically hiking up gas prices, but it also affected the forex market because many of the major currency pairs are tied to the price of oil such as both the USD and CAD, in effect affecting the USD/CAD currency pair.

Overview of USD/CAD - Forex Currency Trading

Here's a general overview of how the USD/CAD behaves. In order to know how to interpret and analyze the news coming out from the US, Canada and the rest of the world economy, we need a grasp of how they all relate and interacts and how it is all connected in the forex market. To really make sense of anything, we need to do a quick historical sketch of this long term relationship between the USD/CAD.

Quick History of the Canadian Dollar - CAD

The CAD was one of the few major world currencies in the post-World War II Bretton Woods system where the value wasn't fixed to gold. It was allowed to float until 1962 in response to a steep decline in value to the USD, where the USD/CAD was fixed at $1.0195 or $.925 CAD/USD. In other words, it cost $1.0195 USD to buy $1 CAD and it cost $.925 CAD to buy $1 USD.
The CAD was once again allowed to float in 1970 due to high inflation, after which it appreciated past the USD. High inflation wasn't unique to Canada. Post World War II, countries around the world began aggressive expansionary measures to rebuild and stimulate their economies.
It's very similar to what's happening in today's world economy. The governments decided to pump money into the economy in an attempt to stimulate it with jobs and production. In doing so, they caused wide-spread inflation all around the world.
This leads us to the first important lesson in the USD/CAD market.

Forex Indicators - Commodity is King

The high investment in expanding and stimulating the world economy in post World War II led to an increase in demand of commodities such as oil. In other words, in order for world economies to produce, they need raw materials and energy such as oil, minerals, lumber, etc. It takes natural resources to build stuff to sell.
This global demand for commodities jacked up the price and countries that exported these commodities saw an increase valuation in their currencies.
Canada was and still is rich in these commodities and in post World War II, the price of Canadian commodities such as oil increased, causing the CAD to increase in value as well. Commodities markets and prices are important forex indicators for the USD/CAD.
Let me paint a picture for you. Let's say oil is selling at $100 per barrel. Suddenly, for whatever reason, there begins heavy investment into the economy to produce more stuff. In order to produce and ship more stuff, it requires more oil to get the energy to produce and ship the stuff.
Demand for the oil goes up sharply, and since generally the supply of commodities such as oil is steady, the price for oil goes up too. So now, it costs $120 per barrel of oil. So how does this increase the value of the CAD?
In order for China to buy oil from Canada, they have to convert their currency into CAD to buy the Canadian oil. Instead of buying $100 CAD, they are now buying $120 CAD. This decreased the supply of CAD, which also ends up raising the price of the CAD as well.
There are many other forex indicators that affect the USD/CAD market other than the price of oil, but because such a big part of the Canadian economy is in commodities, it has a significant impact on the USD/CAD market.
It's by no means the only one among the many forex indicators, but it's a major forex indicator that needs to be considered in the matrix of forex indicators that affect the USD/CAD.
By the way, if you are interested in trading the forex market, you should consider signing up for a forex demo account first with a broker. This will allow you to test what trading skills you think you have, help you hone them if they are any good, and also give you an opportunity to evaluate your broker.

Back to the USD/CAD History Lesson

After riding high on commodity prices for many years, the CAD began to decline in the 1990's due to the emergence of the high technology boom in the US. Though it was a high tech bubble that eventually burst, during the boom years there were tons of investment that was going into US tech firms.
This caused an influx of money into the US stock market, which caused the price of the USD to increase. In other words, in order to buy stock in high tech start up companies in Silicon Valley, investors had to take their foreign currency and exchange it for USD on the forex market in order to buy the shares on the New York Stock Exchange or the NASDAQ.
This cause increase in demand for the USD caused the price to go up in the forex market. As investors were buying USD with other foreign currencies on the forex market, those foreign currencies lost value, including the CAD. That brings up the next important lesson in understanding the relationship between the USD/CAD.

The US Economy

Whenever there is a boom in the US economy like we saw in the high technology bubble and the mortgage securities bubble, you'll likely see a decline in the USD/CAD pair. Why? Exactly for the reason mentioned above.
Well, the technology bubble burst and so did the mortgage securities business. No one seems to really see anything else like that coming. The US economy is not as dependent on commodity exports like Canada, manufacturing has gone overseas almost completely, and technology is also shifting to countries in Asia like China and India.
But, the US has always made it's way in the world through innovation and that has what has always made the difference for the US economy. Who knows what the US will cook up next.
Of course, if and when the US economy begins to pick up and out of recession, watch for the USD/CAD to rise like it always has in a booming US economy. So the important indicators for the strength of the US economy will also be the indicators that will tell you which direction the USD/CAD might go. We'll go into those indicators in another article since we're wanting to just give the overview right now.

The Global Economy - Specifically Emerging Markets

In talking about how the US economy affects the USD/CAD, we also need to mention that the rest of the world plays an integral role as well. Just because the US stock market is going up doesn't mean the USD/CAD will go up as well.
We saw this take place in recent history during financial crisis in the fall of 2008. Because the USD is probably the safest cash haven on the planet, when the world economy was spiraling down, everyone took their cash out of more riskier markets, i.e. the emerging markets, which also has greater potential rewards, and stuck it back in the USD. In this case, the US stock market was plummeting, but the USD/CAD and really the USD in general sky rocketed.
Sometimes when the USD looks unattractive for whatever reason, many people opt to trade it in for the CAD. Forex currency trading in USD/CAD has a lot of complexities.

2010-08-08T04:02:00.000-07:00

Forex demo account - when do you switch to real trading

For those who already have a grasp of forex trading

This article is mainly for those who already have a grasp of forex trading, have opened their forex demo account and have traded for a while. Now the word "a while" could have a very broad meaning in a forex context. One trader might have traded successfully for a couple of months and with some knowledge and experience developed his own profitable system and forex trading strategy with SOUND money management. I am not talking here about 20% or even 10% balance risking for one trade.

You have to leave your emotions outside your trading room

Another, not so successful trader, might still be struggling on finding his method of trading. In fact, he might never have the abilities to trade in forex. Yes, you could be the one who should avoid this particular means of making money. Why? Because it's a kind of a psychological game of probabilities. Just because you are never sure, if you loose today, tomorrow or even for the whole month. If this particular thought frightens you - no offense, but I think you would be better off working somewhere, where you know exactly what you will get for your hard labor. If you want to be sure, what you will get per hour, per day, per month, etc. - forex trading is not for you. On the other hand, if you are very emotional, you throb into tears finding out that you lost 100 dollar bill while walking down the street or jump out of joy when you accidentally find a dime - trading forex investment might not work for you as well. You have to leave your emotions outside your trading room. If you can do that - you could succeed.

So emotions out, and your forex trading system in

So emotions out, and your forex trading system in. If you have traded enough or for a while, you should have developed some kind of profitable forex system. You must already chosen currency pairs to trade

If you have some kind of trading strategy - fine, but have you been testing it long enough?

You must have also developed this set of instruments for at least a half a year. Why so long - because forex currency pairs' movements change drastically in a couple of months, not mentioning years. New strong currency trends appear and they could last for a year, or the opposite - flat movement lasting the same amount of time, and whipsawing every trend trader. If you have some kind of trading strategy - fine, but have you been testing it long enough? If you apply breakout strategy - you will be lucky to jump on an early rising or falling trend and gather some pips. However, what if a trend has exhausted? And after that it will move sideways a couple of months, whereas you desperately want it to break the old trend line and move in the opposite direction? You continuously place loosing orders, because the price just broke the top or bottom and suddenly jumped back with a new momentum wiping out your stop loss. You must me adapted to currency trend changes and this experience comes with time. Even if you trade in a small time frame, like 5 minutes - even then it's not enough to trade successfully for a short time period. I know one trader who has been trading for 5 years and he has been a very successful trader. He has been using a very small time frame forex trade signals, and a pipsing strategy, which I thought was invincible to rapid and big movements. However, during the last eur/usd fall for 3000 pips during 2009 - 2010 he lost everything he earned in those 5 years. What makes you think, you are better than he is? He now is looking for some money to invest further in forex, because this huge trend is finally ending, and we might see some bigger correction (this is only my guess). His pipsing strategy could be profitable again, but the only difference is that he has no capital to invest.

Are you able to identify the timing of your strategy use?

You should sit still and do nothing if your strategy is based on particular price movements and these are not present so far. You can only use those methods when the price itself along with indicators confirms the movement change.
I don not even mention about the profitability of your trading system in the long run. You only switch to real account when you trade profitably in your forex demo account, that is out of the question. If you have several forex systems and those do well in different times and price changes - good, but be careful as to identifying those changes.

The last, but not the least - profitable trading with small leverage and risking less than 5% of your capital with your demo account. This is arguable, of course, but that is only my opinion.

with, you know when to place stops, when to close your positions, what forex trading instruments or forex indicators to use for entering or exit, when not to trade and when to double your positions.

2010-08-08T03:58:00.000-07:00

Forex Scams

Despite many brokers claims to the contrary, trading foreign exchange successfully is not an easy thing to do. FX trading is at best a risky business and at worst, a scammer’s dream come true. The Commodities Futures Trading Commission (CTFC) has seen a marked increase in the amount of foreign exchange scams over the last few years as forex trading has become more and more popular.
There are many companies claiming to have a foolproof way of making money with one system or another and while some of those systems have a basis in fact, even the most well-researched, well developed system cannot take into account the vagaries of the market place.The Division of Clearing and Intermediary Oversight (DCIO) recently released an additional advisory aimed at protecting consumers from this ever growing problem, but the CTFC has some basic, solid advice regarding becoming involved in Forex trading:

No matter what you're told, Forex trading is risky.
Don't be pressured into an immediate decision.
Use common sense.
Get everything in writing.
Check with the CFTC.
Seek advice from an accountant, lawyer or an independent 3rd party.
Don't invest more than you can afford to lose.
Don't mortgage your home or cash in your savings to trade Forex.

As a general rule, it is best to avoid any companies claiming that Forex trading is easy, guarantees results or encourages you to make small deposits and use high leverages. Regardless of how well educated you are, investing a small sum in FX trading is likely to end in losses. Some recent scammers who have been caught by the CTFC include:

Lake Shore Asset Management
Lake Dow and Ty Edwards
Ben Ouyang
Emerald Worldwide Holdings, Inc.
Foreign Fund (First Bank)
Equity Financial, Shasta, or Tech Traders
IBS/IMC
Kevin J. Steele
Nawab Ali Khan Ali
Sun Platinum
Worldwide Commodity CorporationGraystone Browne Financial
Sterling Trading Group, Inc.
STG Global Trading or QIX, Inc.
Universal FX, Inc.

There are case reports available from the CTFC website which are updated on a regular basis. In the meantime, if you have lost money in dealings with any of these companies or individuals, there is a contact page at CTFC.
One of the most disturbing recent trends is the amount of Forex sites claiming to be helping traders when in fact the opposite is true. Forexbastards.com claim they are there to help the trader distinguish the “good guys from the bastards.” Here is a video clip uploaded by Nick B, demonstrating how effective they are.

It is fair to say there is a LOT of disinformation being bandied around by the forex brokers. The CTFC website is perhaps the only guaranteed reliable source of information. Even the so-called anti-scammer’s sites appear to be just as populated with this type of information. Before beginning FX trading, remember these points:

It is NOT possible to make money starting with a small amount of capital.
Using high leverages is almost guaranteed to end in losses.
There is NO foolproof way of making money on the foreign exchange market.

2010-08-08T03:36:00.000-07:00

Euro Rally at Risk Ahead of German GDP Data:8/8/2010

The Euro hit fresh multi-month highs against the US Dollar amidst generally positive economic developments out of the single currency bloc and fairly disappointing economic data out of the US economy. Traders sent the USD lower against every single G10 counterpart through Friday’s close, and momentum plainly favors further declines. Given comparatively strong fundamental developments out of the Euro Zone, it is relatively little surprise to see that the Euro was quite nearly the top-performer through Friday’s close. Yet the coming week of European economic data could very well set the tone for short to medium-term trading.

Markets anxiously await the results of several key Euro Zone economic data releases in the week ahead—most notably German and broader Euro Zone Gross Domestic Product growth figures for the second quarter. Bullish trends in business survey figures and other key data points lead economists to predict that Germany saw its strongest growth since Q1, 2008 in the second quarter. Such relatively lofty expectations leave ample room for disappointment, however, and it will be critical to see whether reality can match forecasts. Analysts likewise believe that Germany—Europe’s largest economy—will continue to drive broader Euro Zone growth. It suffices to say that any disappointments out of said release could have broader implications for general market sentiment for regional fundamentals.

Traders have recently seemed all-too-willing to punish the US Dollar for lackluster economic data as of late, and one has to wonder whether similar disappointments out of the Euro Zone would have the same effect on the Euro currency. Certainly the past two months of gains leaves short-term momentum plainly in favor of EURUSD gains. Yet the currency pair is approaching what may potentially prove a significant resistance mark at $1.3500—the 50% Fibonacci retracement of the December, 2009 – June 2010 decline and the pair’s 200-day Simple Moving Average. On the US Dollar side, the widely-followed Dollar Index is currently at risk of breaking below a long-standing trend channel and its own 200-day moving average.

The coming week may prove critical in determining broader EURUSD trends if we see a test of the key 1.3500 handle. Euro bulls may look to protect profits on a potential failure at said level—especially as oscillators have reached heavily overbought levels on daily charts. - DR

2010-08-08T03:33:00.000-07:00

Gold’s Best Run in Nine Months...Conviction of $1,250:8/8/2010

Gold ended the week with another strong advance. Closing Friday well in positive territory, the precious metal in fact recorded its most consistent bull trend (eight consecutive daily gains) in nine months. If this was the only analysis that was used to assess the strength of the commodity, we would be led to believe that gold was perhaps entering a new phase of a larger market cycle. However, when we take a more critical look at the speculative and fundamental elements of this performance, there is reason to believe that the market’s gains are far more strained than a mere series of daily closes would allow for. And, one of the most accessible arguments against a boundless rally is the pace of gold’s climb to this point. Despite the consistency of the seven-day advance, the metal has only progressed 3.8 percent and has made modest progress in reversing the previous month’s tumble. For comparison, the equivalent run in November scaled 8 percent and developed near the end of a long-term bull wave.

From a fundamental perspective, gold’s hesitation in further is logical. Through the commodities steady climb, we have seen the backdrop of risk appetite fluctuate from positive to negative a number of times. A simplistic association of this commodity playing the role of a safe haven would lead us to believe that this is a break in a critical correlation. This is a mistaken conclusion for two reasons. The first point to make is that gold is not the perfect alternative to a risky asset. It is uncertainty in the stability of the financial markets in general that imbues the precious metal with an abnormal value that directs capital to the already expensive asset. The high volatility of exchange rates and the risk of liquidity troubles for normal investment assets highlights the metal’s unique position in the market. That being said, gold is not nearly liquid enough to stand in as its own currency; it is not acceptable payment for most other assets (you can’t easily buy stocks with gold for example), it is exposed to high volatility along and it is heavily influenced by speculators and buy only funds.

The other consideration for gold’s deviation is that risk appetite trends themselves are ill-supported. Though we have seen equities climb this past week to new two-and-a-half month highs, the advance has been choppy and the test of new levels has depressed rather than amplified momentum. If we look at the market in context, most growth-dependent assets are attempting to retrace losses suffered earlier in the year and are therefore currently drifting within a broader range. This leaves the capital market more or less range bound rather than carving a distinct trend. Considering additional purchasing for gold will come more and more from long-term sources, the draw of a meaningful trend is imperative at such heights.

Looking ahead to next week, we have to consider both the catalyst for underlying risk trends rather than short-term economic and speculative implications of event risk. Looking at this week’s economic offerings, there are more than a few indicators that can supply short-term activity; but the underlying current will be significantly altered by few releases. From the mix, the European GDP numbers are perhaps the most influential figures. Not only is this a reading of expansion, it will define Europe’s ability to survive austerity. - JK

2010-08-08T03:27:00.000-07:00

Dollar continues goes down for Sixth Week vs. Euro, Falls vs. Pound & Yen:8/8/2010

The dollar extended its losses against the other currencies as the macroeconomic reports continue to suggest that the US recovery is fragile and the additional stimulus may be required.

On Monday, the good reports weren’t able to aid the currency much, but boosted it slightly against the yen. Next day pushed the dollar down with the disheartening figures. The unexpectedly good employment reports on Wednesday sparked the optimism, which were removed on Thursday and turned in the pessimism yesterday as the reports showed that everything not that good with the job market in the US.
The greenback showed the same trend against other major currencies: the continuous decline for the whole week, except for Wednesday, when the currency jumped. The dollar also rose versus the yen on Monday, albeit not much.
EUR/USD rose from 1.3061 to 1.3292, advancing for the sixth straight week. GBP/USD jumped from 1.5895 to 1.5965 after falling as low as 1.5839 this week. USD/JPY dropped from 85.84 to 85.39, following the decline to the weekly low level of 85.02.
If you want to comment on the US dollar’s recent action or have any questions regarding this currency, please, feel free to reply below.

2010-08-06T16:29:00.000-07:00

10 Advantages to Auto Trading Software

It is imperative that before trying your luck in the foreign exchange trading business, you take time to learn the basics. You also need to employ a careful understanding of its mechanism. By getting yourself a forex robot trading system that will work even without you manning it, you reduce the risk of absorbing a large loss of capital. Automated forex trading systems also offer important tips and methods that you may use as you deal with the most changing, unpredictable, and unpleasant circumstances in the market.

Forex robots are computer programs that automatically scan the forex market and automatically make trades based on programmed algorithms. These trades are made with little or no intervention by a human operator. These robots are numerous and they are out in the market. But what is really in these products that make them worth the buy?

Forget about the burden of making complex computations because the forex robot will handle all of your mathematical concerns. You can trust it to do the calculations up to the last drop of the risk evaluations. Need you know more? Of course! Read on below for the 10 advantages to having automated forex trading software.

1. You will pay no commissions.

People who take part in the equity market will tell you point blank that you have to secure brokers and pay them with their commissions. However, for forex trading software, you are able to keep all your profits to yourself. You need not pay for any brokerage or clearing fees. You only pay the bid/ask spread.

2. There are no middlemen.

This kind of business eliminates the need for any middleman. This means that with the use of the forex robot, you are able to deal with the market maker in an online electronic exchange method.

3. It promotes only a small transaction cost.

With this business, you are only to pay the “ask or bid” spread. Now in terms of the trading that transpires in the forex market, there are two faintly different exchange rates assigned for every currency pair. That is, the difference in the price between the buy price and the sell price. This is how the broker makes his money because he or she often quotes two different rates for every currency. The money changer then earns his profit based on the difference he places in the exchange rates.

4. Better liquidity.

Forex trading means having the transactions immediately executed and with a forex robot in use, the more promising the business can be! After all, it is a market that is flooded with buyers and sellers who do business 24 hours a day, 5 days a week..

5. It utilizes higher leverage.

Because of the large amount of leverage granted to forex traders it does not take a lot of capital to make a substantial amount of profit. Of course one must be cautious using high leverage because the losses can be magnified as well..

6. The market operates 24/5.

Trading is done all over the world and the market is open for 24 hours in a day. Even though some of the major regions are closed for a particular business day, the others are open to do business. Through the help of the forex robot, you can continue trading currency pairs even while you sleep.

7. You can access it online.

One of the most attractive features of trading forex...you can do it from home! You don’t need to leave the confines of your home because you can access it by using the Internet.

8. You get to profit from both the bull and the bear market.

The bull market refers to the market that goes up while the bear market is the one that goes down. With the forex robot, you can earn both ways.

9. It is user-friendly.

Forex robotare generally easy to install, access, and use. This means that you don’t have to go through the agony of operating it.

10. There is no need to supervise it.

The forex robot doesn’t need human interference. Just keep it updated according to manufacturer guidelines so that it can deliver its best performance.

Overall, automated forex trading software is a must in this line of business. Get the hang of it and you will surely succeed and experience that superb financial freedom!

2010-08-06T15:30:00.000-07:00

US GOLD - US gold keeps rising:6/8/2010

New York, 06 August 2010 - US futures rose again on Friday and broke through $1,200 per ounce as disappointing jobs data and a weaker dollar had investors seeking the safety of the yellow metal.

December gold closed at $1,205.30 per ounce, up $6 or 0.5 percent from Thursday’s closing price of $1,199.30 on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange (Nymex). Prices moved from an intraday low of $1,194.50 to a high of $1,213.30, the highest point since July 15.

Gold prices rallied $21.40 or 1.8 percent from last Friday’s closing price of $1,183.90 per ounce, boosted by both poor economic data in the US and expectations of greater demand in China.

Gold’s latest bounce came after today’s non-farm payrolls report showed the US economy shed 131,000 jobs last month, more than double the 63,000 expected and higher the 125,000 jobs lost in June.

The unemployment rate remained at 9.6 percent, although it had been expected to rise to 9.6 percent.

The dollar, in turn, sank to 1.3334 against the euro, the lowest point since April 30, before moving to around 1.3280.

In other precious metals, September silver climbed 15.1 cents or 0.8 percent to $18.472 per ounce on the Comex. Silver prices rose 2.6 percent this week.

However, platinum prices declined 0.4 percent and palladium prices sank 2.5 percent this week - and they both kept falling today. October platinum slipped $1.70 or 0.1 percent to $1,570.80 per ounce and September palladium dropped $8.45 or 1.7 percent to $487.60 per ounce on the Nymex.