Archives

Getting a Forex Trading Education

Monday, April 23, 2007

Many Americans are interested in getting involved in forex trading. Before doing this, you should get a forex trading education. You should never get into forex trading without forex trading education. With the proper forex trading education, you can be on your way to making a tidy profit.

First you need to understand what forex trading is. Forex is short for foreign exchange. Forex trading is the simultaneous exchange of one countries currency for another countries currency. By doing so at the right times, you can gain a profit. A forex trading education can teach you how to do this.

The first part of a forex trading education is to learn the market background. The foreign exchange market is always changing. With forex trading education, you will learn how to monitor these changes to be beneficial for you.

The next part of your forex trading education is to learn about risk control and risk management. You learn to control yourself and not over invest at the thrill of the chance of making money. You will also learn how to cut your losses (how to exit losing trades before your losses exceed your limits). You will always lose money when you first begin forex trading. This part of your forex trading education is absolutely crucial to whether you will make it big or end up in a hole.

Another important part of your forex trading education is to learn how to open and manage your forex trading account. Your forex trading education should first have you practice with a demo account. This way you learn the ropes by practicing forex trades with play money. There is no risk involved, but it is just as realistic as the real thing. Your forex trading education should also let you know when you are ready for the real thing. You should then, and only then, open up a live forex trading account.

There are many ways to get a forex trading education. The best place to get a forex trading education is online. There are many free websites available that let you open free demo accounts to practice your forex trading. There are also free seminars that are avaiable at random times. The best thing to do is to get some advice from someone who is a current forex trader. They can give you some down to earth insight on the subject of forex trading.

Now that you know a little bit about forex trading it is time for you to go out and get a good forex trading education. Don't rush into it and take your time. There is a lot of money involved with forex trading. It is best not to get ahead of yourself.

The Day Trade Forex System: How to Choose An Online Forex Brokerage Firm

What to look for in an online Forex Brokerage Firm:

1. Low Spreads
In Forex Trading the 'spread' is the difference between the buy and sell price of any given currency pair. The lower the spread saves the trader money. Most firms offer 4-5 pip spreads in the Major Currency pairs. The best firms offer clients 3-5 pips.

2. Low minimum account openings
For those that are new to trading, and for those that don't have thousands of dollars in risk capital to trade, being able to open a mini trading account with only $200 is a great feature for new traders.

3. Instant automatic execution of your orders
This is very important when choosing a Forex firm. You want instant execution of your orders and the price you see and 'click' is the price that you should get. Don't settle with a firm that re-quotes you when you click on a price or a firm that allows for price 'slippage'. This is
very important when trading for small profits.

4. Free charting and technical analysis
You need a firm that gives you access to the best charting and technical analysis available to active traders. The firm that I recommend gives clients FREE professional charting services and even allows traders totrade directly on the charts!

5. High Leverage
You want high leverage-the ability to trade a large amount with a small margin deposit. Some of the best firms offer .25% or 400:1 leverage.

6. Hedging Capability
You want the flexibility of opening positions on the same currency pair in opposite directions without them eliminating each other and without margin increase!

7. A realistic demo account trading capital balance that reflects the actual dollar amount that the trader will start live trading with. It does the demo trader no good to start out demo trading with a $50,000 account, when in real life he will only start out with $1,000. A forex brokerage needs to offer the trader a demo account starting balance other than the standard $50,000.

After alot of research and personal experience, the firm that I recommend with the above-mentioned benefits is Capital Markets Services LLC (CMS Forex LLC).

Open a free unlimited demo account and start practicing!

The goal of the Day Trade Forex System is to instruct and teach potential traders how to day trade the currency markets and what to look for in an online forex brokerage.

The objective of day trading is to trade the intra day market moves to try to gain small to medium sized profits in any given trading day. This is how this guide will help. Most readers will not have the time or resources to 'position trade' like the major institutions and banks do. They tend to look at the big picture holding onto trades for weeks or months.

The Day Trade Forex System is specifically designed for use with the 1, 5 or 10-15 minute charts, with the goal of taking 5-30 pip profits per trade - closing bad trades out using tight stops, or hedging any losing trades. The ability to trade right off the charts makes the CMS trading platform our favorite.

We feel that the CMS trading platform offers traders the most features that fit the criteria listed above.

Forex market offers opportunity and information

The forex market is what is called an international exchange currency market, where currencies are exchanged on a daily basis. There are five forex market centers around the world - New York, London, Tokyo, Frankfurt and Zurich. One does not need to be on the trading floor, so to speak to be involved in the forex market. Today, forex trading can be done from home on a computer.

The forex market itself is basically a worldwide connection of traders, who make investment moves based on the price of currencies, or their values relative to other currencies. These traders constantly negotiate prices with other traders resulting in the fluctuation or movement of a currency's value. The value of a currency on the forex market also corresponds with supply. If there is greater demand for the Euro, let's say, then there will be less supply of it on the forex market, which means, in time, it will make a Euro more valuable compared to let's say the dollar. In short, in this forex market situation, one Euro would yield more dollars, subsequently weakening the dollar as well. Analyzing the forex market's fluctuations allows investors to make predictions on how a currency will move in relation to another currency. They then can make predictions and buy and sell currency accordingly.

While some people view the forex market as a place to see what their exchange rate will be when they travel abroad, others view it as an opportunity to make great gains in their financial planning and future.

Discover An Effective Forex Trading System

What is the importance of an effective Forex trading system? An effective system provides you the trader, incomparable prospects to increase your earnings. And why not?

The Forex market is the largest financial market in the world with average daily trading of the currencies going over US$1.6 trillion. One other thing, it's the most liquid market there is, to trade in. Forex market or Foreign exchange market is the trading activity that refers to the synchronized buying of one currency, which is called the base currency while selling off a second currency, called the counter or quote currency. As you've probably gathered, these currencies are traded in pairs. Some of the most popular pairs are US Dollar/Japanese Yen (USD/JPY) and the Euro/US Dollar (EUR/USD. This is done with the clear intent to profit from the appreciation of the e.g. U.S. Dollar. These three currencies together with the British Pound, Canadian Dollar, Australian Dollar and the Swiss Franc are the most popular currencies traded, accounting for nearly 70% of the trading done in the United States marketplace.

Why is there a need for an effective Forex trading system? One reason is because of the unique characteristics of the Forex trading market.

For one, Forex trading is conducted differently from the stock market or futures trading. There is no central physical location, where the transactions are conducted.

Another unique characteristic is a majority of the transactions are done over the telephone link ups or electronic exchanges, which makes this an over-the-counter or interbank market. This makes it ideal for the use of computers and technical analysis, to take advantage of profitable opportunities.

There are more chances to increase profits, because of the attractive pricing. Forex quotes are based on interbank prices regards of the transaction size.

Orders are effectively carried out, because orders are immediately confirmed on line or over the phone, you'll know the rate at which the order was executed.

Finally, the margin system is in your favor. With 2% of the absolute value of the interbank contracts, you can still trade in the largest marketplace, provided you are able to maintain the margin requirements.

With all the benefits and differences a Forex market has, what makes it crucial to for you to have an effective trading system in place?

As with all trading activities, trading foreign exchange carries a great risk. You'll need to ascertain for yourself what these risks are. The high degree of leverage is a double edged sword; it can work for or against your benefit.

You should gauge the level of your knowledge and experience. Should you hire a financial advisor? Have you decided on the amount you are willing to risk and at what financial level you are willing to take losses?

For with the unlimited potential to earn, comes the possibility of great financial loss. There is no fool-proof Forex trading system.

10 Common Mistakes In Trading

I would like to talk about 10 common mistakes in trading. New traders are often unaware of what is required in trading and the bad habits that can lead to financial suicide.

1. Under capitalization - One of the first mistake I made when beginning to trade was being under capitalized. I started with a $10K account without any idea on how to trade. You need enough capital to learn and gain the experience. Some like to call the initial stake "market tuition." If you can avoid paying your dues, great for you. But most new traders will lose their money. Just make sure you learn from every loss.

2. Having the approach to trading as a "learn as you trade" - Big mistake. "Learn as you trade" = losing money. Losing money can lead to emotional and financial stress and may even create enough fear in you making it hard to trade. Make sure you come prepared to the battlefield. Be a strategist. Sun Tzu said, "The battle is won before it is fought." Think about it.

3. Trading as a hobby - Take a look at your hobbies. Do they make money? Hobbies in general are entertainment that cost money. Do not approach trading as a hobby. Treat it like a business. Develop a business plan, have goals, and understand what you want out of trading.

4. Thinking that you know it all - The moment one thinks he knows it all is the moment he has become a fool. Its impossible to know everything about the markets. This is a lifetime learning process. Find your niche, find your speciality and be an expert in it. In other words, find your edge. One thing I learned in trading is that niche = money.

5. Trading without a plan - One of the worst things you can do as a trader is to trade without a plan. Trading without a plan is like driving in a new area without a map or a navigation system. You are lost.

6. Not following your trading plan - Okay so now you have a trading plan. Why don't you just follow it? A common mistake among traders is not following a developed trading plan. This leads to impulse trading or emotional trading.

7. Wanting to be right - Are you trying to be right? Or are you trying to make money? This is a hard one... I personally have to battle myself to avoid this bad habit. Our egos interupt with our trading and we tend to want to prove something to ourself or someone else. The markets do not care what you think. You are in it to make money.

8. Money Management - Strict money management is a necessity. Set your risk parameters for all your trading setups. A common rule is to risk no more than 2% on one trade. I prefer 1%. Being long 10 different stocks at 2% risk per trade is not a good idea. In fact you are risking 20%. Know your size and do not double up your position after a series of losses. Be a grinder and not a cowboy.

9. Have realistic goals - Too many traders come into this arena without unrealistic goals. Questions like "Can I make a million my first year with a $10k account?" Sure you can, but is that really realistic? Focus on crafting your trading. When you know how to trade the money will flow naturally.

10. Not analyzing yourself and your trades - This a poker habit I have. I tend to analyze every losing and winning hand to learn from it. Traders need to do the same and analyze every trade. Think about it after the trading hours and focus on what you can do to improve. Trading is a constant journey of soul searching as well. Understand yourself and you will significantly improve your trading.