Forex is always priced in pairs between two different types of currencies. When you make a trade, you have to buy one currency and sell another at the same time. If you want to exit the trade, you must buy/sell the opposite position. For example, when you think the price of the Euro is going to rise against the US Dollar. In order for you to enter a trade, you will have to buy Euros and sell US Dollars.
If you want to leave the trade, you will have to sell Euros and buy back US Dollars. You will be hoping that you were right in your guess and that the exchange rate for EU/USD has actually risen, which means that you will get more Euros back than when you bought them, which is how you will make a profit.
These days just about every forex broker is claiming to have the tightest spreads in the industry. But marketing does have the ability to be deceiving. The topic of spreads in the forex spot market is very complicated and often not easy to understand. However, nothing affects your trading profitability more.
First of all in order to understand the spread, you need to know what it is. A spread is the difference between the ask price (the price you buy at) and the bid price (the price you sell at) that is quoted in the pips. If the quote between EUR/USD at a given moment is 1.2222/4, then the spread equals 2 pips. If the quote is 1.22225/40, then the spread is going to equal 1.5 pips.
The spread is how brokers make their money. Wider spreads will result in a higher asking price and a lower bid price. The consequence to this is that you have to pay more when you buy and get less when you sell, which makes it more difficult to realize a profit
Brokers generally don’t earn the full spread, especially when they hedge client positions. The spread helps to compensate for the market maker for taking on risk from the time it starts a client trade to when the broker's net exposure is hedged (which could possibly be at a different price).
Spreads are important because they affect the return on your trading strategy in a big way. As a trader, your sole interest is buying low and selling high (like futures and commodities trading). Wider spreads means buying higher and having to sell lower. A half-pip lower spread doesn't necessarily sound like much, but it can easily mean the difference between a profitable trading strategy and one that isn’t profitable.
The tighter the spread is the better things are going to be for you. However tight spreads are only meaningful when they are paired up with good execution. Quality of execution will decide whether you actually receive tight spreads. A good example of this is when your screen shows a tight spread, but your trade is filled a few pips to your disadvantage or is mysteriously rejected.When this occurs repeatedly, it means that your broker is showing tight spreads but is effectively delivering wider spreads. Rejected trades, delayed execution, slipping, and stop-hunting are strategies that some brokers use to get rid of the promise of tight spreads.
If you want to leave the trade, you will have to sell Euros and buy back US Dollars. You will be hoping that you were right in your guess and that the exchange rate for EU/USD has actually risen, which means that you will get more Euros back than when you bought them, which is how you will make a profit.
These days just about every forex broker is claiming to have the tightest spreads in the industry. But marketing does have the ability to be deceiving. The topic of spreads in the forex spot market is very complicated and often not easy to understand. However, nothing affects your trading profitability more.
First of all in order to understand the spread, you need to know what it is. A spread is the difference between the ask price (the price you buy at) and the bid price (the price you sell at) that is quoted in the pips. If the quote between EUR/USD at a given moment is 1.2222/4, then the spread equals 2 pips. If the quote is 1.22225/40, then the spread is going to equal 1.5 pips.
The spread is how brokers make their money. Wider spreads will result in a higher asking price and a lower bid price. The consequence to this is that you have to pay more when you buy and get less when you sell, which makes it more difficult to realize a profit
Brokers generally don’t earn the full spread, especially when they hedge client positions. The spread helps to compensate for the market maker for taking on risk from the time it starts a client trade to when the broker's net exposure is hedged (which could possibly be at a different price).
Spreads are important because they affect the return on your trading strategy in a big way. As a trader, your sole interest is buying low and selling high (like futures and commodities trading). Wider spreads means buying higher and having to sell lower. A half-pip lower spread doesn't necessarily sound like much, but it can easily mean the difference between a profitable trading strategy and one that isn’t profitable.
The tighter the spread is the better things are going to be for you. However tight spreads are only meaningful when they are paired up with good execution. Quality of execution will decide whether you actually receive tight spreads. A good example of this is when your screen shows a tight spread, but your trade is filled a few pips to your disadvantage or is mysteriously rejected.When this occurs repeatedly, it means that your broker is showing tight spreads but is effectively delivering wider spreads. Rejected trades, delayed execution, slipping, and stop-hunting are strategies that some brokers use to get rid of the promise of tight spreads.
You are going to love this lesson. Using pivot points as a trading strategy has been around for a long time and was originally used by floor traders. This was a nice simple way for floor traders to have some idea of where the market was heading during the course of the day with only a few simple calculations.
The pivot point is the level at which the market direction changes for the day. Using some simple arithmetic and the previous days high, low and close, a series of points are derived. These points can be critical support and resistance levels.
The pivot level and levels calculated from that are collectively known as pivot levels. Every day the market you are following has an open, high, low and a close for the day (some markets like forex are 24 hours but generally use 5pm EST as the open and close). This information basically contains all the data you need to calculate the pivot levels.
The reason pivot point trading is so popular is that pivot points are predictive as opposed to lagging. You use the information of the previous day to calculate potential turning points for the day you are about to trade (present day).
Because so many traders follow pivot points you will often find that the market reacts at these levels. This give you an opportunity to trade.
Before I go into how you calculate pivot points, I just want to point out that I have put an online calculator and a really neat desktop version that you can download for free HERE
If you would rather work the pivot points out by yourself, the formula I use is below:
Resistance 3 = High + 2*(Pivot - Low)
Resistance 2 = Pivot + (R1 - S1)
Resistance 1 = 2 * Pivot - LowPivot Point = ( High + Close + Low )/3
Support 1 = 2 * Pivot - High
Support 2 = Pivot - (R1 - S1)
Support 3 = Low - 2*(High - Pivot)
As you can see from the above formula, just by having the previous days high, low and close you eventually finish up with 7 points, 3 resistance levels, 3 support levels and the actual pivot point.
If the market opens above the pivot point then the bias for the day is for long trades as long as price remains above the pivot point. If the market opens below the pivot point then the bias for the day is for short trades as long as the market remains below the pivot point.
The three most important pivot points are R1, S1 and the actual pivot point.
The general idea behind trading pivot points is to look for a reversal or break of R1 or S1. By the time the market reaches R2,R3 or S2,S3 the market will already be overbought or oversold and these levels should be used for exits rather than entries.A perfect set up would be for the market to open above the pivot level and then stall slightly at R1 then go on to R2. You would enter on a break of R1 with a target of R2 and if the market was really strong close half at R2 and target R3 with the remainder of your position.
This all looks pretty straight forward.
Unfortunately life is not that simple and we have to deal with each trading day the best way we can. I have picked a day at random from last week and what follows are some ideas on how you could have traded that day using pivot points.
On the 12th August 04 the Euro/Dollar (EUR/USD) had the following:
High - 1.2297
Low - 1.2213
Close - 1.2249
This gave us:
Resistance 3 = 1.2377
Resistance 2 = 1.2337
Resistance 1 = 1.2293
Pivot Point = 1.2253
Support 1 = 1.2209
Support 2 = 1.2169
Support 3 = 1.2125
Have a look at the 5 minute chart below
The pivot point is the level at which the market direction changes for the day. Using some simple arithmetic and the previous days high, low and close, a series of points are derived. These points can be critical support and resistance levels.
The pivot level and levels calculated from that are collectively known as pivot levels. Every day the market you are following has an open, high, low and a close for the day (some markets like forex are 24 hours but generally use 5pm EST as the open and close). This information basically contains all the data you need to calculate the pivot levels.
The reason pivot point trading is so popular is that pivot points are predictive as opposed to lagging. You use the information of the previous day to calculate potential turning points for the day you are about to trade (present day).
Because so many traders follow pivot points you will often find that the market reacts at these levels. This give you an opportunity to trade.
Before I go into how you calculate pivot points, I just want to point out that I have put an online calculator and a really neat desktop version that you can download for free HERE
If you would rather work the pivot points out by yourself, the formula I use is below:
Resistance 3 = High + 2*(Pivot - Low)
Resistance 2 = Pivot + (R1 - S1)
Resistance 1 = 2 * Pivot - LowPivot Point = ( High + Close + Low )/3
Support 1 = 2 * Pivot - High
Support 2 = Pivot - (R1 - S1)
Support 3 = Low - 2*(High - Pivot)
As you can see from the above formula, just by having the previous days high, low and close you eventually finish up with 7 points, 3 resistance levels, 3 support levels and the actual pivot point.
If the market opens above the pivot point then the bias for the day is for long trades as long as price remains above the pivot point. If the market opens below the pivot point then the bias for the day is for short trades as long as the market remains below the pivot point.
The three most important pivot points are R1, S1 and the actual pivot point.
The general idea behind trading pivot points is to look for a reversal or break of R1 or S1. By the time the market reaches R2,R3 or S2,S3 the market will already be overbought or oversold and these levels should be used for exits rather than entries.A perfect set up would be for the market to open above the pivot level and then stall slightly at R1 then go on to R2. You would enter on a break of R1 with a target of R2 and if the market was really strong close half at R2 and target R3 with the remainder of your position.
This all looks pretty straight forward.
Unfortunately life is not that simple and we have to deal with each trading day the best way we can. I have picked a day at random from last week and what follows are some ideas on how you could have traded that day using pivot points.
On the 12th August 04 the Euro/Dollar (EUR/USD) had the following:
High - 1.2297
Low - 1.2213
Close - 1.2249
This gave us:
Resistance 3 = 1.2377
Resistance 2 = 1.2337
Resistance 1 = 1.2293
Pivot Point = 1.2253
Support 1 = 1.2209
Support 2 = 1.2169
Support 3 = 1.2125
Have a look at the 5 minute chart below
The green line is the pivot point. The blue lines are resistance levels R1,R2 and R3. The red lines are support levels S1,S2 and S3.
There are loads of ways to trade this day using pivot points but I shall walk you through a few of them and discuss why some are good in certain situations and why some are bad.
The Breakout Trade
At the beginning of the day we were below the pivot point, so our bias is for short trades. A channel formed so you would be looking for a break out of the channel, preferably to the downside. In this type of trade you would have your sell entry order just below the lower channel line with a stop order just above the upper channel line and a target of S1. The problem on this day was that, S1 was very close to the breakout level and there was just not enough meat in the trade (13 pips). This cab be a good entry technique for you. Just because it was not suitable this day, does not mean it will not be suitable the next day.
There are loads of ways to trade this day using pivot points but I shall walk you through a few of them and discuss why some are good in certain situations and why some are bad.
The Breakout Trade
At the beginning of the day we were below the pivot point, so our bias is for short trades. A channel formed so you would be looking for a break out of the channel, preferably to the downside. In this type of trade you would have your sell entry order just below the lower channel line with a stop order just above the upper channel line and a target of S1. The problem on this day was that, S1 was very close to the breakout level and there was just not enough meat in the trade (13 pips). This cab be a good entry technique for you. Just because it was not suitable this day, does not mean it will not be suitable the next day.
The Pullback Trade
This is one of my favorite set ups. The market passes through S1 and then pulls back. An entry order is placed below support, which in this case was the most recent low before the pullback. A stop is then placed above the pullback (the most recent high - peak) and a target set for S2. The problem again, on this day was that the target of S2 was to close, and the market never took out the previous support, which tells us that the market sentiment is beginning to change.
Advanced
As I mentioned earlier, there are lots of ways to trade with pivot points. A more advanced method is to use the cross of two moving averages as a confirmation of a breakout. You can even use combinations of indicators to help you make a decision. It might be the cross of two averages and also MACD must be in buy mode.
In the example below the market passed through S1 and then retraced to the S1 line again. It then formed a channel. At around this time we had a cross of the averages, MACD signaled buy and there was a breakout of the channel line. This gave a great signal to go long with a target of the original pivot line.
Mess around with a few of your favorite indicators to help determine an entry around a pivot level but remember the signal is a break of a level and the indicators are just confirmation.
Forex Trading: Calculating Profit And Loss In Foreign Currency Trading
1 komentar Diposting oleh IRAWAN di 23.55The foreign exchange market, or Forex market, is an around-the-clock cash market where the currencies of nations are bought and sold. Forex trading is always done in currency pairs. For example, you buy Euros, paying with U.S. Dollars, or you sell Canadian Dollars for Japanese Yen. The value of your Forex investment increases or decreases because of changes in the currency exchange rate or Forex rate. These changes can occur at any time, and often result from economic and political events. Using a hypothetical Forex investment, this article shows you how to calculate profit and loss in Forex trading. To understand how the exchange rate can affect the value of your Forex investment, you need to learn how to read a Forex quote. Forex quotes are always expressed in pairs. In the following example, your pair of currencies are the U.S. Dollar (USD) and the Canadian Dollar (CAD). The Forex quote, USD/CAD = 170.50, means that one U.S. Dollar is equal to 170.50 Canadian Dollars. The currency to the left of the "/" (USD in this example) is referred to as base currency and its value is always 1. The currency to the right of the "/" (CAD in this example) is referred to as the counter currency. In this example, one USD can buy 170.50 CAD, because it is the stronger of the two currencies. The U.S. Dollar is regarded as the central currency of the Forex market, and it is always treated as the base currency in any Forex quote where it is one of the pairs. Let's go now to our hypothetical Forex investment to show how you can profit or come up short in Forex trading. In this example, your pair of currencies are the U.S. Dollar and the Euro. The Forex rate of EUR/USD on August 26, 2003 was 1.0857, which means that one U.S. Dollar was equal to 1.0857 Euros, and was the weaker of the two currencies. If you had bought 1,000 Euros on that date, you would have paid $1,085.70. One year later, the Forex rate of EUR/USD was 1.2083, which means that the value of the Euro increased in relation to the USD. If you had sold the 1,000 Euros one year later, you would have received $1,208.30, which is $122.60 more than what you had started with one year earlier. Conversely, if the Forex rate one year later had been EUR/USD = 1.0576, the value of the Euro would have weakened in relation to the U.S. Dollar. If you had sold the 1,000 Euros at this Forex rate, you would have received $1,057.60, which is $28.10 less than what you had started out with one year earlier. As with stocks and mutual funds, there is risk in Forex trading. The risk results from fluctuations in the currency exchange market. Investments with a low level of risk (for example, long-term government bonds) often have a low return. Investments with a higher level of risk (for example, Forex trading) can have a higher return. To achieve your short-term and long-term financial goals, you need to balance security and risk to the comfort level that works best for you.
Over recent years online Forex trading has now become big business and certainly in the financial sector this is the biggest market of all in the world. The reason why this market has grown compared to the many other financial markets is because of the rise in the number of traders working online rather than using the more traditional method of trading by using the phone. Because of this increase there are a number of sites which are now offering to people the chance of learning about this through taking free online Forex trading courses. However as with a lot of things in life today sometimes the best things in life are not for free and certainly the same could be said for many of these courses. When you are considering taking an online forex trading course, there are a number of things that you will need to take into consideration. 1. Who is offering this course? 2. Just why is it they are offering to provide you with a book to learn about Forex trading for free? 3. Are they actually offering this course because they are promoting a particular trading site and then want you to enroll on it? 4. Once you begin to read the book do you find that they are being extremely pushy when it comes to actually getting you to use a particular website to invest your money in? The answers that you provide to the above questions will help to show you just how honest the information being provided to you for free is. One way of discovering if the free online forex trading course that you are looking at is of the highest standard is by looking at how much of the information contained within it is replicated elsewhere. You will soon learn that a lot of the information you find in some of the free online forex trading course books can easily be found when you search the net. So rather than using these books or courses to teach you how to trade on the Forex market instead use the advice and articles about the subject that are being offered on other sites. Plus why not join one of the many forums that have been set up and discuss your issues with some of the people here. They are people who have been trading on the Forex market for some time and will often offer you the best advice when it comes to finding a suitable course for learning about Forex trading. Certainly the better free online Forex trading courses are those that do not limit themselves to telling you about how one company trades. Rather it should be providing you with views of all the sites that are available and which are run by established companies. Any such courses should be prepared to provide you with everything that you need to know about the world of Forex trading and not restrict you to using the services of just one or the abilities of one company.
Recent years we witnessed increasing numbers of Forex investment opportunities in United States. However, it is common that one afraid of being involved in Forex market because of high risk in this trading field. Although every capital market involves certain level of risk, the risk of loss in foreign currency trading market can be extensive. It would be wise to learn about the potential risk (and managing it) if you wish to trade in Forex market. Knowledge Needless to say, knowledge is the key of handling your risks well. Before you get into Forex market, the best thing you should do is educate yourself. What drives currency price movement? How to read analysis data? How to read chart indicators? Learn detail about how currency price move and how to trade foreign currency exchange in order to avoid unnecessary risks. If you wish to learn more, http://www.golearnforex is a good source for Forex beginner education. Forex dealer Choosing the right FX dealer is a way to avoid unnecessary risks. Forex dealers are not all regulated the same way. Although Forex dealers must be regulated by law, firms and individuals can solicit retail accounts for Forex dealers and manage those accounts without being regulated. As a trader you should take up the responsibility of finding out if your Forex dealers are regulated. If they are not, you may be exposed to additional risks. Also, beware of dealers with investment schemes that sounds too good to be true. Pay extra cautions to dealers that you first knew and always look into the investment offers. If you are from United States, you can always refer to CFTF (at http://www.cftc.gov) or NFA (at http://www.nfa.org) for further information. Forex market is a non-centralized market. There is no common market place for Forex traders and there is no so-call 'standard' in foreign currency exchange price. Different Forex dealers offer very different deals to their customers. As an individual FX trader, you depends solely on the dealer to make a transaction in your trades, thus picking up the right dealer is extremely crucial in your risk. Stop loss order Besides depending on the Forex dealer, a stop loss come very handful if you wish to limit your risks. Always trade Forex with a stop loss order as it will assure you to exit market in a price that you can handle the losses. As an example, if you purchase 100k of EUR/USD at 1.2050 expecting the EUR/USD to rise in value, and your stop is placed at 1.2020, you are guaranteed to be filled at your price (except in very volatile market.) To leverage or not? One way to manage your risks well in Forex market is to trade without overleveraged. Forex dealers want you to trade with high leverage values as this means more spread income for them. Also, trading in high leverage may increase your profit or your losing. There are high possibilities that one lose money more than he or she can afford in margin trading. Conclusion You come to this article probably because of you are new to FOREX and were looking for some readings on the Internet. To be frank, Forex can be very profitable but the risk lie beneath is equally great. But what else in life does not involve risk? You can be fired from your job, factory may malfunctions, stock market may collapse, your boss may runaway with your wages, and hey! These are all risk. Learning in risk management is the key to handle your life. Trade smartly, and gain the maximum out of Forex - good luck!
5 Things You Must Do If You Want To Attain Financial Freedom Through Forex Trading
0 komentar Diposting oleh IRAWAN di 23.50With the amazing growth of the forex market, you are going to see an astounding amount of traders lose all their money. Unfortunately, they haven't followed the simple steps I have laid out for you. Go through these steps and give yourself the greatest opportunity to achieve your goals.
1. Have Faith In Yourself
To reach the level of elite forex trader, you must trust in yourself and your forex trading education. You must be willing to make all your trading decisions, instead of relying on someone else's thoughts or ability (or lack of). Of course, you will prepare yourself fully before every risking any money.
2. Accept Your Learning Curve
Unless you are a veteran trader, you will lose money trading the Forex market. This is a near certainty. I don't say this to talk you out of trading. In fact, quite the opposite. You will be trading against others that fall to this reality day in and day out. You, however, will not risk a dime until you have learned the skills you need to make money trading the forex.
3. Decide What Type of Trader You Are
There are many ways to trade the forex. They range from very active to very patient. You must decide which style suits you best. The best time to learn this about yourself is while you are trading a demo account. There is no need to allow your learning curve to cost you money.
4. Get Educated
Education is the shortest path to elite forex trading. Regardless of your ultimate goals, you will reach them quicker with a great forex trading education. Take some time to review different options before deciding on who to trust with your forex trading education needs. A forex seminar will help shorten your learning curve drastically.
5. Continue to Get Educated
In order to achieve and retain elite forex trading skills, you must constantly be adding to you knowledge base. Your education should never end. In fact, one of the key points to look for in an elite forex trading course is ongoing education. It's nice to have an ongoing relationship with the person/people helping you to achieve your goals.
What separates an elite forex trader from all others is their desire and ability to be independent. Many traders are willing to follow signals, systems, strategies, or anything else you may call them. By taking this approach, however, these traders are only as good as the people they follow.
An elite forex trader will lead. Their decisions will be calculated and analyzed to near perfection. They will make decisions with no hesitation, and handle the growth of their account in a predetermined, intelligent fashion. Take your trading to their level and you will never look back.
1. Have Faith In Yourself
To reach the level of elite forex trader, you must trust in yourself and your forex trading education. You must be willing to make all your trading decisions, instead of relying on someone else's thoughts or ability (or lack of). Of course, you will prepare yourself fully before every risking any money.
2. Accept Your Learning Curve
Unless you are a veteran trader, you will lose money trading the Forex market. This is a near certainty. I don't say this to talk you out of trading. In fact, quite the opposite. You will be trading against others that fall to this reality day in and day out. You, however, will not risk a dime until you have learned the skills you need to make money trading the forex.
3. Decide What Type of Trader You Are
There are many ways to trade the forex. They range from very active to very patient. You must decide which style suits you best. The best time to learn this about yourself is while you are trading a demo account. There is no need to allow your learning curve to cost you money.
4. Get Educated
Education is the shortest path to elite forex trading. Regardless of your ultimate goals, you will reach them quicker with a great forex trading education. Take some time to review different options before deciding on who to trust with your forex trading education needs. A forex seminar will help shorten your learning curve drastically.
5. Continue to Get Educated
In order to achieve and retain elite forex trading skills, you must constantly be adding to you knowledge base. Your education should never end. In fact, one of the key points to look for in an elite forex trading course is ongoing education. It's nice to have an ongoing relationship with the person/people helping you to achieve your goals.
What separates an elite forex trader from all others is their desire and ability to be independent. Many traders are willing to follow signals, systems, strategies, or anything else you may call them. By taking this approach, however, these traders are only as good as the people they follow.
An elite forex trader will lead. Their decisions will be calculated and analyzed to near perfection. They will make decisions with no hesitation, and handle the growth of their account in a predetermined, intelligent fashion. Take your trading to their level and you will never look back.
Forex is an abbreviated name for "foreign exchange." The Forex market is a non-stop cash market where the currencies of nations are bought and sold, typically via brokers. For example, you buy Euros, paying with U.S. Dollars, or you sell Euros for Japanese Yen. The value of your Forex investment increases or decreases because of changes in the currency exchange rate or Forex rate. These changes often result from economic and political factors, such as the price of oil or political unrest. To better understand how the exchange rate can affect the value of your Forex investment, this article shows you how to read a Forex quote. Forex quotes are always expressed in pairs. In the following example, your "pair" of currencies are the U.S. Dollar (USD) and the Euro (EUR). The Forex quote, USD/EUR = 265.50, means that one U.S. dollar is equal to 265.50 Euros. The currency to the left of the / (USD in this case) is referred to as base currency and its value is always 1. The currency to the right of the / (EUR in this case) is referred to as the counter currency. In this example, one USD can buy 265.50 EUR, since it is the stronger of the two currencies. Because the U.S. dollar is regarded as the central currency of the Forex market, it is always treated as the base currency in any Forex quote where it is one of the pairs. Incidentally, the U.S. Dollar is involved in nearly 90% of all Forex transactions. In this example, your "pair" of currencies are the Japanese Yen (JPY) and the Euro (EUR). The Forex quote, JPY/EUR= 175.10, means that one Japanese Yen is equal to 175.10 Euros. The currency to the left of the / (JPY in this case) is referred to as base currency and its value is 1. The currency to the right of the / (EUR in this case) is referred to as the counter currency. In this example, one JPY can buy 175.10 EUR, since it is the stronger of the two currencies. The goal of any Forex trading system is to profit from foreign currency movements. This requires adequate training in basic Forex principles, such as performing a Technical Analysis, using Forex charts and Stop/Loss tools, and keeping up-to-date with economic and political events. In a sense, Forex training never ends.
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