Accounts In Forex

Although the movement today is towards all transaction eventually finishing in a profit and loss in US Dollars it is important to realize that your profit or loss may not actually be in US Dollars.

From my observation the trend is more pronounced in the US as you would expect.

Most US based traders assume they will see their balance at the end of each day in US Dollars. I have even spoken with some traders who are oblivious to the fact the their profit might have actually been in Japanese Yen.

Let me explain a little more. You sell (go short) USD/JPY and as such are short USD and Long (bought) JPY. You enter the trade at 116.10 and exit 116.90. You in fact made 80,000 Japanese Yen (1 lot traded) not US Dollars.

If you traded all four major currencies against the US Dollar you would in fact have made or lose in EUR, GPY, JPY and CHF. This might give you a ledger balance at the end of the day or month with four different currencies.

This is common in London. They will stay in that currency until you instruct the broker to exchange the currencies into your own base currency.

This actually happened to me. After dealing with mainly US based brokers it had never occurred to me that my statement would be in anything other than US Dollars.

This can work for you or against you depending on the rate of exchange when you change back into your home currency. Once I knew the convention I simply instructed the broker to change my profit or loss into US Dollars when I closed my position. It is worth checking how your broker approaches this and simply ask them how they handle it. A small point, but worth noting.

Nowadays most countries have regulated forex, but it is still worth checking that the broker who you are dealing with is regulated in the country that it operates, insured or bonded and has some kind of track recorded.

I cannot advise you on which broker you should use as there are just to many variables to each person, but as a rule of thumb, nearly all countries have some kind of regulatory authority who will be able to advise you. Most of the regulatory authorities will have a list of brokers that fall within their jurisdiction and will give you that list. They probably wont tell whom to use but at least if the list came from them you can have some confidence in those companies.

Once you have a list, give a few of them a call, see who you feel comfortable with, ask for them to send you their polices and procedures.

If you live near where your broker is based, go spend the day with him. I have been to many brokerages just to check them out. It will give you a chance to see their operation and meet their team.

This brings up another interesting point. When you open an account with a broker you will have to fill in some forms basically stating your acceptance of their polices. This can range from a 1 page document to something resembling a book.

Take the time to read through these documents and make a list of things you don't understand or want explained.

Most reputable companies will be happy to spend some time with you on this. Your involvement with your broker is largely up to you. As a forex trader you will probably spend long hours staring at the screen without talking to anyone. You may be the sort of person who likes this or you may be the sort of person who likes to chat with the dealer in the trading room. You will normally get a call once a week or once a month from someone in the brokerage asking if everything is OK.

Forex Trading Education - The London Open Checklist

A thorough Forex trading education must include an understanding of the effect market timings can have on trading and liquidity.

One of the most active periods of the day is from the time the London market opens. Often around that time good trading opportunities will appear.

As part of your Forex trading education, learn to analyze market conditions around London open and begin to recognize good setups.

The following questionnaire and checklist will help.

London Open Preparation

About 15 to 30 minutes before London open check the answers to these questions:

- Are the MACD indicators on the 4 hour and 1 hour charts in agreement? If they are not going in the same direction be very careful!

- Is there MACD divergence on the 4 hour, 1 hour, or 15 minute chart? Look for other clues to confirm that price may go in the direction of MACD divergence.

- On the 4 hour chart what is the overall trend?

- Do a Fibonacci calculation on the last swing high and low and see if price is pulling back to an optimum retracement level or whether it is reaching a key extension level.

- Note price in relation to the 200 EMA (Exponential Moving Average) on the 4 hour, 1 hour and 15 minute charts. Is price bucking the trend? In other words, is price above the 200 EMA on the 4 hour and 1 hour chart but below it on the 15 minute? Then be prepared for price to go long at some stage. (Draw the opposite conclusion if price is below the 200 EMA on the 4 hour and 1 hour chart but above it on the 15 minute chart.)

- Are any Economic Reports imminent?

- As the candle closes on the 15 minute chart at London open, do you see any distinctive candle patterns such as tweezers, or doji's or hammers indicating price exhaustion?

- If I entered a trade right now in a particular direction, what would be the risk and where would I place my stop?

Within a few minutes of London open, if you see a number of factors converging from the analysis above, make a decision one way or the other:

- trade

- wait for clearer signals or a better entry point

Carrying out an analysis in this way each day at London open will do much to increase your Forex trading education.

It will make you aware of what is happening on the charts and in the marketplace and help you to arrive at conclusions.

There is no magic formula involved with Forex trading education. Put simply, successful Forex trading is the result of years of hard work, study, practice, and experience often gained through painful trading scenarios.

Eventually the newer trader learns mental discipline, and how to control the emotions - probably the biggest part of a Forex trading education.

Practice a procedure like the one above day after day and begin to see some progress as you get nearer the time you make profits consistently from currency trading.

Forex Glossary

Here are some of the most common terms used in FOREX trading.

Ask Price ¨C Sometimes called the Offer Price, this is the market price for traders to buy currencies. Ask Prices are shown on the right side of a quote ¨C e.g. EUR/USD 1.1965 / 68 ¨C means that one euro can be bought for 1.1968 UD dollars.

Bar Chart ¨C A type of chart used in Technical Analysis. Each time division on the chart is displayed as a vertical bar which show the following information ¨C the top of the bar is the high price, the bottom of the bar is the low price, the horizontal line on the left of the bar shows the opening price and the horizontal line on the right of bar shows the closing price.

Base Currency ¨C is the first currency in a currency pair. A quote shows how much the base currency is worth in the quote (second) currency. For example, in the quote - USD/JPY 112.13 ¨C US dollars are the base currency, with 1 US dollar being worth 112.13 Japanese yen.

Bid Price ¨C is the price a trader can sell currencies. The Bid Price is shown on the left side of a quote - e.g. EUR/USD 1.1965 / 68 ¨C means that one euro can be sold for 1.1965 UD dollars.

Bid/Ask Spread ¨C is the difference between the bid price and the ask price in any currency quotation. The spread represents the broker's fee, and varies from broker to broker.

Broker ¨C the intermediary between buyer and seller. Most FOREX brokers are associated with large financial institutions and earn money by setting a spread between bid and ask prices.

Candlestick Chart - A type of chart used in Technical Analysis. Each time division on the chart is displayed as a candlestick ¨C a red or green vertical bar with extensions above and below the candlestick body. The top of the extension shows the highest price for the chart division and the bottom of the extension shows the lowest price. Red candlesticks indicate a lower closing price than opening price, and green candlesticks indicate the price is rising.

Cross Currency ¨C A currency pair that does not include US dollars ¨C e.g. EUR/GBP.

Currency Pair ¨C Two currencies involved in a FOREX transaction ¨C e.g. EUR/USD.

Economic Indicator ¨C A statistical report issued by governments or academic institutions indicating economic conditions within a country.

First In First Out (FIFO) ¨C refers to the order open orders are liquidated. The first orders to be liquidated are the first that were opened.

Foreign Exchange (FOREX, FX) ¨C Simultaneously buying one currency and selling another.

Fundamental Analysis ¨C Analysis of political and economic conditions that can affect currency prices.

Leverage or Margin ¨C The ratio of the value of a transaction to the required deposit. A common margin for FOREX trading is 100:1 ¨C you can trade currency worth 100 times the amount of your deposit.

Limit Order ¨C An order to buy or sell when the price reaches a specified level.

Lot ¨C The size of a FOREX transaction. Standard lots are worth about 100,000 US dollars.

Major Currency ¨C The euro, German mark, Swiss franc, British pound, and the Japanese yen are the major currencies.

Minor Currency ¨C The Canadian dollar, the Australian dollar, and the New Zealand dollar are the minor currencies.

One Cancels the Other (OCO) ¨C Two orders placed simultaneously with instructions to cancel the second order on execution of the first.

Open Position ¨C An active trade that has not been closed.

Pips or Points ¨C The smallest unit a currency can be traded in.

Quote Currency ¨C The second currency in a currency pair. In the currency pair USD/EUR the euro is the quote currency.

Rollover ¨C Extending the settlement time of spot deals to the current delivery date. The cost of rollover is calculated using swap points based on interest rate differentials.

Technical Analysis ¨C Analysis of historical market data to predict future movements in the market.

Tick ¨C The minimum change in price.

Transaction Cost ¨C The cost of a FOREX transaction ¨C typically the spread between bid and ask prices.

Volatility ¨C A statistical measure indicating the tendency of sharp price movements within a period of time.

Charts for the technical analysis

Kinds of prices and time units. Charts for the technical analysis are being constructed in coordinates price (the vertical axis) time (the horizontal axis). The following kinds of currency prices represented on charts are being distinguished on Forex:
* open - a price at the beginning of a trade period (year, month, day, week, hour, minute or a certain amount of one from these units);
* close - a price at the end of a trade period;
* high - the highest from prices observed during a trade period;
* low - the lowest from prices observed during a trade period.

Providing the technical analysis one uses charts for different time units  from 1 year or more till 1 minute. The bigger is a time unit applied for the chart plotting the bigger is a time span to analyze price movements and to determine the major trend by means of the chart. For the short trading charts for less time units are more suitable.

Line chart. The line chart is plotted connecting single prices for a selected time period. The most popular line chart is the daily chart. Although any point in the day can be plotted, most traders focus on the closing price, which they perceive as the most important. But an immediate problem with the daily line chart is the fact that it is impossible to see the price activity for the balance of the period as well as gaps  breakups in prices at joints of trade periods. Nevertheless, line charts are easier to visualize. Also, technical analysis goes well beyond chart formation; in order to execute certain models and techniques, line charts are better suited than any of the other charts.

Bar chart. The bar chart consists from separate histograms. To plot a histogram in coordinates price  time the points responding to high, low, open and close prices for a time period analyzed should be marked on the one vertical bar. The opening price usually is marked with a little horizontal line to the left of the bar; and the closing price is marked with a little horizontal line to the right of the bar. Bar charts have the obvious advantage of displaying the currency range for the period selected. An advantage of this chart is that, unlike line charts, the bar chart is able to plot price gaps. Hence, it is impossible to see on a bar chart absolutely all price movements during the period.

Candlestick chart. The candlestick chart is closely related to the bar chart. It also consists of four major prices: high, low, open, and close. In addition to the common readings, the candlestick chart has a set of particular interpretations. The latter is possible thanks to the convenient visual observation of that chart.

The opening and closing prices form the body (jittai) of the candlestick. To indicate that the opening was lower than the closing, the body of the bar is left blank. Current standard electronic displays allow you to keep it blank or select a color of your choice. If the currency closes below its opening, the body is filled. In its original form, the body was colored black, but the electronic displays allow you to keep it filled or to select a color of your choice. The intraday (or weekly) direction on a candlestick chart can be traced by means of two "shadows": the upper shadow (uwakage) and the lower shadow (shitakage). Just as with a bar chart, the candlestick chart is unable to trace every price movement during a period's activity.

Risks by the foreign exchange on Forex

The Forex is essentially risk-bearing. By the evaluation of the grade of a possible risk accounted should be the following kinds of it: exchange rate risk, interest rate risk, and credit risk, country risk.

Exchange rate risk. Exchange rate risk is the effect of the continuous shift in the worldwide market supply and demand balance on an outstanding foreign exchange position. For the period it is outstanding, the position will be subject to all the price changes. The most popular measures to cut losses short and ride profitable positions that losses should be kept within manageable limits are the position limit and the loss limit. By the position limitation a maximum amount of a certain currency a trader is allowed to carry at any single time during the regular trading hours is to be established. The loss limit is a measure designed to avoid unsustainable losses made by traders by means of stop-loss levels setting.

Interest rate risk. Interest rate risk refers to the profit and loss generated by fluctuations in the forward spreads, along with forward amount mismatches and maturity gaps among transactions in the foreign exchange book. This risk is pertinent to currency swaps, forward outright, futures, and options (See below). To minimize interest rate risk, one sets limits on the total size of mismatches. A common approach is to separate the mismatches, based on their maturity dates, into up to six months and past six months. All the transactions are entered in computerized systems in order to calculate the positions for all the dates of the delivery, gains and losses. Continuous analysis of the interest rate environment is necessary to forecast any changes that may impact on the outstanding gaps.

Credit risk. Credit risk refers to the possibility that an outstanding currency position may not be repaid as agreed, due to a voluntary or involuntary action by a counter party. In these cases, trading occurs on regulated exchanges, such as the clearinghouse of Chicago. The following forms of credit risk are known:

1. Replacement risk occurs when counterparties of the failed bank find their books are subjected to the danger not to get refunds from the bank, where appropriate accounts became unbalanced.

2. Settlement risk occurs because of the time zones on different continents. Consequently, currencies may be traded at the different price at different times during the trading day. Australian and New Zealand dollars are credited first, then Japanese yen, followed by the European currencies and ending with the U.S. dollar. Therefore, payment may be made to a party that will declare insolvency (or be declared insolvent) immediately after, but prior to executing its own payments.

Therefore in assessing the credit risk, end users must consider not only the market value of their currency portfolios, but also the potential exposure of these portfolios. The potential exposure may be determined through probability analysis over the time to maturity of the outstanding position. The computerized systems currently available are very useful in implementing credit risk policies. Credit lines are easily monitored. In addition, the matching systems introduced in foreign exchange since April 1993 are used by traders for credit policy implementation as well. Traders input the total line of credit for a specific counterparty. During the trading session, the line of credit is automatically adjusted. If the line is fully used, the system will prevent the trader from further dealing with that counterparty. After maturity, the credit line reverts to its original level.

Dictatorship risk. Dictatorship (sovereign) risk refers to the government's interference in the Forex activity. Although theoretically present in all foreign exchange instruments, currency futures are, for all practical purposes, excepted from country risk, because the major currency futures markets are located in the USA. Hence, traders have to realize that kind of the risk and be in state to account possible administrative restrictions.

Short data about the origin and development of the currency exchange market

Currency trading has a long history and can be traced back to the ancient Middle East and Middle Ages when foreign exchange started to take shape after the international merchant bankers devised bills of exchange, which were transferable third-party payments that allowed flexibility and growth in foreign exchange dealings.

The modern foreign exchange market characterized by periods of high volatility (that is a frequency and an amplitude of a price alteration) and relative stability formed itself in the twentieth century. By the mid-1930s the British capital London became to be the leading center for foreign exchange and the British pound served as the currency to trade and to keep as a reserve currency. Because in the old times foreign exchange was traded on the telex machines, or cable, the pound has generally the nickname “cable”.

After the World War II, where the British economy was destroyed and the United States was the only country unscarred by war, U.S. dollar, in accordance with the Breton Woods Accord between the USA, Great Britain and France (1944) became the reserve currency for all the capitalist countries and all currencies were pegged to the American dollar (through the constitution of currencies ranges maintained by central banks of relevant countries by means of the interventions or currency purchases). In turn, the U.S. dollar was pegged to gold at $35 per ounce. Thus, the U.S. dollar became the world's reserve currency. In accordance with the same agreement was organized the International Monetary Fund (IMF) rendering now a significant financial support to the developing and former socialist countries effecting economical transformation.

To execute these goals the IMF uses such instruments as Reserve trenches, which allows a member to draw on its own reserve asset quota at the time of payment, Credit trenches drawings and stand-by arrangements. The letters are the standard form of IMF loans unlike of those as the compensatory financing facility extends financial help to countries with temporary problems generated by reductions in export revenues, the buffer stock financing facility which is geared toward assisting the stocking up on primary commodities in order to ensure price stability in a specific commodity and the extended facility designed to assist members with financial problems in amounts or for periods exceeding the scope of the other facilities.

At the end of the 70-s the free-floating of currencies was officially mandated that became the most important landmark in the history of financial markets in the XX century lead to the formation of Forex in the contemporary understanding. That is the currency may be traded by anybody and its value is a function of the current supply and demand forces in the market, and there are no specific intervention points that have to be observed. Foreign exchange has experienced spectacular growth in volume ever since currencies were allowed to float freely against each other. While the daily turnover in 1977 was U.S. $5 billion, it increased to U.S. $600 billion in 1987, reached the U.S. $1 trillion mark in September 1992, and stabilized at around $1.5 trillion by the year 2000.

Main factors influences on this spectacular growth in volume are mentioned below. A significant role belonged to the increased volatility of currencies rates, growing mutual influence of different economies on bank-rates established by central banks, which affect essentially currencies exchange rates, more intense competition on goods markets and, at the same time, amalgamation of the corporations of different countries, technological revolution in the sphere of the currencies trading. The latter exposed in the development of automated dealing systems and the transition to the currency trading by means of the Internet. In addition to the dealing systems, matching systems simultaneously connect all traders around the world, electronically duplicating the brokers' market.

Advances in technology, computer software, and telecommunications and increased experience have increased the level of traders' sophistication, their ability to both generate profits and properly handle the exchange risks. Therefore, trading sophistication led toward volume increase.

Forex - What is it?

The international currency market Forex is a special kind of the world financial market. Trader’s purpose on the Forex to get profit as the result of foreign currencies purchase and sale. The exchange rates of all currencies being in the market turnover are permanently changing under the action of the demand and supply alteration. The latter is a strong subject to the influence of any important for the human society event in the sphere of economy, politics and nature. Consequently current prices of foreign currencies evaluated for instance in the US dollars fluctuate towards its higher and lower meanings. Using these fluctuations in accordance with a known principle “buy cheaper – sell higher” traders obtain gains. Forex is different in compare to all other sectors of the world financial system thanks to his heightened sensibility to a large and continuously changing number of factors, accessibility to all individual and corporative traders, exclusively high trade turnover which creates an ensured liquidity of traded currencies and the round - the clock business hours which enable traders to deal after normal hours or during national holidays in their country finding markets abroad open.

Just as on any other market the trading on Forex, along with an exclusively high potential profitability, is essentially risk - bearing one. It is possible to gain a success on it only after a certain training including a familiarization with the structure and kinds of Forex, the principles of currencies price formation, the factors affecting prices alterations and trading risks levels, sources of the information necessary to account all those factors, techniques of the analysis and prediction of the market movements as well as with the trading tools and rules. An important role in the process of the preparation for the trading on Forex belongs to the demotrading (that is to trade using a demo-account with some virtual money), which allows to testify all the theoretical knowledge and to obtain a required minimum of the trade experience not being subjected to a material damage.

Online Currency Trading requires Patience

When the going gets tough, the tough get going. This adage often brings back the memories of my past days when I was trading initially in the currency exchange market. Indeed, there's nothing more hurtful than losing your invested money in the FX market. But, online currency trading is like life where you're got to learn from your wrong moves and keep moving on. Learning the basic skills of online forex trading could be easy but, practically, one needs to acquire the advanced skills to play safe through thick and thin of FX trading.

I have traded in forex for many years and, if you count on me, I must tell you that the secret of successful trading lies largely on the hunch and intuition of an trader. Technically expressed, you should have the accurate forex alerts and forex signals to be able to make the right moves in the currency market. However, this is easier said than done as the skills of the Currency Trading Signal takes a long time to master. This is why while a few people are able to boost their forex pips in a short span of time, the others take a long time to achieve the same or maybe, some of them get frustrated and just give it up! The reality is that not many people are ready to be entirely devoted to the perilous process of online forex trading.

Having said this, I still wonder why some people choose to be a dare-devil and risk their money instead of simply following an established and renowned Account Forex Online Trading. I began trading in 1997 and there is one important thing I have learnt in my trading career so far, i.e., you have to got to be patient to learn the tricks of making right moves at the right times and profit from your trading.

Since I have led quite a successful career in forex trading, I have been sharing the tips and tricks of online currency trading with many traders around the world through my G7 Forex Trading System which as you know has remained pretty successful for many traders so far. My G7 Forex Trading System is an easy-to-follow, step-by-step trading manual offering in-depth online forex trading review.

If you visit my site (www.forex-science.com) you will find many of my existing customers are pretty satisfied with the performance of their investments and in fact, most of them have been able to increase their forex pips drastically. You would be surprised to know quite a few of them haven't traded for a long time! Now, this is what we call success in the forex trading, eh?

Successful Options Trading Strategies

When it comes to giving people the hope of becoming a millionaire overnight, the stock market excels. Every day we see evidence of stocks that have flown upwards as if they had wings, providing investors with a windfall of profits. It's inevitable that catching one of those stocks just before it takes off is an exciting possibility, inspiring the beginning trader to take the plunge. When you trade options, the stakes are raised, making those massive profits even more attainable, but the basics that underlie successful trading in the stock market are the same as those for trading options.

Once you start to look at trading stocks, you find yourself plunged into a confusing nightmare where hundreds if not thousands of people are pushing "their" system that is supposedly infallible. For a beginner, it's easy to get drawn into the complex net, believing that there must be a simple solution that will hand you the keys to stock market success. These keys will see you finding winner after winner, and making your fortune.

The reality, however, is that there are no keys that will find a winner every time. After all, if that was possible, how could anyone ever lose any money in the market? And if nobody loses, then how can someone else gain? The whole stock market would collapse.

Having said that, there are a number of very successful trading systems that work well over the long term. It's important to realize that a winning system is one that consistently delivers profit over a longer time frame - and part of the equation is that a percentage of trades will be losers. Once you learn to look at the bigger picture, rather than focusing on the individual trades, you'll be a lot more successful in the market.

There are a couple of approaches to the market that are popular across many systems. One is to take small losses when they happen, and let your winners run. So you might take six little losses, which are more than compensated for by one huge gain. This type of approach takes a lot of confidence and self-discipline, as it's very easy to give up if those six little losses all happen in a row, without a winner in sight.

Another approach is to take your profits after a certain percentage of gain, and occasionally put up with a medium sized loss. This system is nice if you like to see profits, because you don't run the risk of a stock that's risen suddenly dropping again and wiping out your profit - you took your profit early. However you also run the risk that the stock will continue to fly upwards and you miss out on that profit. This system can be risky, because you need a number of small profitable trades to cover one of the losses.

If you can't make up your mind which approach suits you, why not try more than one? You can always split your capital over a couple of portfolios, and use a different strategy for each portfolio. This can be time consuming, but at least you can then make a logical comparison of the choices and decide which one has worked best for you.

It's also important not to abandon your system the second you see a trade making a loss. Far too many traders think that they're only successful if every trade is a winner, which is ridiculous. Then the trader switches to another system, messes around with that for a while, sees a loss, and switches again. You need to find a system that gives you a good overall return, and stick to it. The more you chop and change, the higher your chances of losing more.

Most of the success that comes with trading comes from one source - and it's not the perfect trading system. It's all about you. Trading is more about psychology than watching the charts. You need to have the right character to be a successful trader. Self discipline, confidence, the ability to see the bigger picture, accepting losses as part of the game, controlling your fear and greed - all of these elements work together to make you a successful trader.

If you can identify a system that delivers a consistent profit, and have the discipline to stick with it even when an individual trade loses, then your chances of success are high. And remember - it's always good to start with pretend trades to get the hang on things, before you commit your life savings to the market.

Forex Options Market Overview

The forex options market started as an over-the-counter (OTC) financial vehicle for large banks, financial institutions and large international corporations to hedge against foreign currency exposure. Like the forex spot market, the forex options market is considered an "interbank" market. However, with the plethora of real-time financial data and forex option trading software available to most investors through the internet, today's forex option market now includes an increasingly large number of individuals and corporations who are speculating and/or hedging foreign currency exposure via telephone or online forex trading platforms.

Forex option trading has emerged as an alternative investment vehicle for many traders and investors. As an investment tool, forex option trading provides both large and small investors with greater flexibility when determining the appropriate forex trading and hedging strategies to implement.

Most forex options trading is conducted via telephone as there are only a few forex brokers offering online forex option trading platforms.

Forex Option Defined - A forex option is a financial currency contract giving the forex option buyer the right, but not the obligation, to purchase or sell a specific forex spot contract (the underlying) at a specific price (the strike price) on or before a specific date (the expiration date). The amount the forex option buyer pays to the forex option seller for the forex option contract rights is called the forex option "premium."

The Forex Option Buyer - The buyer, or holder, of a foreign currency option has the choice to either sell the foreign currency option contract prior to expiration, or he or she can choose to hold the foreign currency options contract until expiration and exercise his or her right to take a position in the underlying spot foreign currency. The act of exercising the foreign currency option and taking the subsequent underlying position in the foreign currency spot market is known as "assignment" or being "assigned" a spot position.

The only initial financial obligation of the foreign currency option buyer is to pay the premium to the seller up front when the foreign currency option is initially purchased. Once the premium is paid, the foreign currency option holder has no other financial obligation (no margin is required) until the foreign currency option is either offset or expires.

On the expiration date, the call buyer can exercise his or her right to buy the underlying foreign currency spot position at the foreign currency option's strike price, and a put holder can exercise his or her right to sell the underlying foreign currency spot position at the foreign currency option's strike price. Most foreign currency options are not exercised by the buyer, but instead are offset in the market before expiration.

Foreign currency options expires worthless if, at the time the foreign currency option expires, the strike price is "out-of-the-money." In simplest terms, a foreign currency option is "out-of-the-money" if the underlying foreign currency spot price is lower than a foreign currency call option's strike price, or the underlying foreign currency spot price is higher than a put option's strike price. Once a foreign currency option has expired worthless, the foreign currency option contract itself expires and neither the buyer nor the seller have any further obligation to the other party.

The Forex Option Seller - The foreign currency option seller may also be called the "writer" or "grantor" of a foreign currency option contract. The seller of a foreign currency option is contractually obligated to take the opposite underlying foreign currency spot position if the buyer exercises his right. In return for the premium paid by the buyer, the seller assumes the risk of taking a possible adverse position at a later point in time in the foreign currency spot market.

Initially, the foreign currency option seller collects the premium paid by the foreign currency option buyer (the buyer's funds will immediately be transferred into the seller's foreign currency trading account). The foreign currency option seller must have the funds in his or her account to cover the initial margin requirement. If the markets move in a favorable direction for the seller, the seller will not have to post any more funds for his foreign currency options other than the initial margin requirement. However, if the markets move in an unfavorable direction for the foreign currency options seller, the seller may have to post additional funds to his or her foreign currency trading account to keep the balance in the foreign currency trading account above the maintenance margin requirement.

Just like the buyer, the foreign currency option seller has the choice to either offset (buy back) the foreign currency option contract in the options market prior to expiration, or the seller can choose to hold the foreign currency option contract until expiration. If the foreign currency options seller holds the contract until expiration, one of two scenarios will occur: (1) the seller will take the opposite underlying foreign currency spot position if the buyer exercises the option or (2) the seller will simply let the foreign currency option expire worthless (keeping the entire premium) if the strike price is out-of-the-money.

Please note that "puts" and "calls" are separate foreign currency options contracts and are NOT the opposite side of the same transaction. For every put buyer there is a put seller, and for every call buyer there is a call seller. The foreign currency options buyer pays a premium to the foreign currency options seller in every option transaction.

Forex Call Option - A foreign exchange call option gives the foreign exchange options buyer the right, but not the obligation, to purchase a specific foreign exchange spot contract (the underlying) at a specific price (the strike price) on or before a specific date (the expiration date). The amount the foreign exchange option buyer pays to the foreign exchange option seller for the foreign exchange option contract rights is called the option "premium."

Please note that "puts" and "calls" are separate foreign exchange options contracts and are NOT the opposite side of the same transaction. For every foreign exchange put buyer there is a foreign exchange put seller, and for every foreign exchange call buyer there is a foreign exchange call seller. The foreign exchange options buyer pays a premium to the foreign exchange options seller in every option transaction.

The Forex Put Option - A foreign exchange put option gives the foreign exchange options buyer the right, but not the obligation, to sell a specific foreign exchange spot contract (the underlying) at a specific price (the strike price) on or before a specific date (the expiration date). The amount the foreign exchange option buyer pays to the foreign exchange option seller for the foreign exchange option contract rights is called the option "premium."

Please note that "puts" and "calls" are separate foreign exchange options contracts and are NOT the opposite side of the same transaction. For every foreign exchange put buyer there is a foreign exchange put seller, and for every foreign exchange call buyer there is a foreign exchange call seller. The foreign exchange options buyer pays a premium to the foreign exchange options seller in every option transaction.

Plain Vanilla Forex Options - Plain vanilla options generally refer to standard put and call option contracts traded through an exchange (however, in the case of forex option trading, plain vanilla options would refer to the standard, generic forex option contracts that are traded through an over-the-counter (OTC) forex options dealer or clearinghouse). In simplest terms, vanilla forex options would be defined as the buying or selling of a standard forex call option contract or a forex put option contract.

Exotic Forex Options - To understand what makes an exotic forex option "exotic," you must first understand what makes a forex option "non-vanilla." Plain vanilla forex options have a definitive expiration structure, payout structure and payout amount. Exotic forex option contracts may have a change in one or all of the above features of a vanilla forex option. It is important to note that exotic options, since they are often tailored to a specific's investor's needs by an exotic forex options broker, are generally not very liquid, if at all.

Intrinsic & Extrinsic Value - The price of an FX option is calculated into two separate parts, the intrinsic value and the extrinsic (time) value.

The intrinsic value of an FX option is defined as the difference between the strike price and the underlying FX spot contract rate (American Style Options) or the FX forward rate (European Style Options). The intrinsic value represents the actual value of the FX option if exercised. Please note that the intrinsic value must be zero (0) or above - if an FX option has no intrinsic value, then the FX option is simply referred to as having no (or zero) intrinsic value (the intrinsic value is never represented as a negative number). An FX option with no intrinsic value is considered "out-of-the-money," an FX option having intrinsic value is considered "in-the-money," and an FX option with a strike price at, or very close to, the underlying FX spot rate is considered "at-the-money."

The extrinsic value of an FX option is commonly referred to as the "time" value and is defined as the value of an FX option beyond the intrinsic value. A number of factors contribute to the calculation of the extrinsic value including, but not limited to, the volatility of the two spot currencies involved, the time left until expiration, the riskless interest rate of both currencies, the spot price of both currencies and the strike price of the FX option. It is important to note that the extrinsic value of FX options erodes as its expiration nears. An FX option with 60 days left to expiration will be worth more than the same FX option that has only 30 days left to expiration. Because there is more time for the underlying FX spot price to possibly move in a favorable direction, FX options sellers demand (and FX options buyers are willing to pay) a larger premium for the extra amount of time.

Volatility - Volatility is considered the most important factor when pricing forex options and it measures movements in the price of the underlying. High volatility increases the probability that the forex option could expire in-the-money and increases the risk to the forex option seller who, in turn, can demand a larger premium. An increase in volatility causes an increase in the price of both call and put options.

Delta - The delta of a forex option is defined as the change in price of a forex option relative to a change in the underlying forex spot rate. A change in a forex option's delta can be influenced by a change in the underlying forex spot rate, a change in volatility, a change in the riskless interest rate of the underlying spot currencies or simply by the passage of time (nearing of the expiration date).

The delta must always be calculated in a range of zero to one (0-1.0). Generally, the delta of a deep out-of-the-money forex option will be closer to zero, the delta of an at-the-money forex option will be near .5 (the probability of exercise is near 50%) and the delta of deep in-the-money forex options will be closer to 1.0. In simplest terms, the closer a forex option's strike price is relative to the underlying spot forex rate, the higher the delta because it is more sensitive to a change in the underlying rate

FOREX Trading Strategy - The Secret of Timing

Once you¡¯ve identified a trading opportunity, the next step is to decide EXACTLY when to buy - and this is where many traders go wrong.

Here we explain how to incorporate better market timing into your FOREX strategy - so that you can make bigger profits.

Most traders time their entry levels incorrectly, so here¡¯s the right way to do it:

Using Support and Resistance Correctly

A basic wisdom of market timing is ¡°buy low, sell high¡± - well, the reality is, if you try this in FOREX trading, you¡¯ll end up losing money. First, let¡¯s define what support and resistance means

A support level is a historical price that traders come in, and buy to ¡°support the market¡± ¨C and the more times it¡¯s tested, the more valid the support will be.

Conversely, a resistance level is a level on the charts that ¡°resisted prices from moving higher¡±- again the more times it¡¯s tested, the more significant it becomes.

Why Buy Low and Sell High doesn¡¯t Work

¡°Buy low, sell high¡± is accepted wisdom by the majority of traders - but this logic is fundamentally flawed - use it in FOREX trading, and you¡¯re asking for trouble. Why? - If you wait for a pullback, you¡¯re going to miss some of the biggest moves.

Think about it - what if a currency starts to trend and doesn¡¯t pullback? (How often have you seen this?) If you¡¯re waiting for a pullback that never comes, you¡¯ll never get in on the trade ¨C and you¡¯ll miss a major opportunity.

You Need to Feel Uncomfortable

When Trading in the FOREX market, you should usually feel uncomfortable (and that¡¯s why most traders don¡¯t make these trades) - as no one likes to buy or sell after the market has started trending - but doing this will make you money.

The fact is, the more comfortable you feel when entering a trade at support, the less likely the trade will be a big winner.

During any given year, most of the big moves in currencies, take place from new MARKET HIGHS with NO pullback.

If you base your FOREX Trading strategy around waiting for a warm comfy entry, at key support, you¡¯re going to miss the biggest and most profitable trades ¨C so step away from the losing majority of traders.

Your FOREX trading strategy should give you a different mindset - most traders ¡°buy low and sell high¡± - so you should ¡°buy high and sell higher¡± ¨C i.e. you should be doing the opposite of what the crowd are doing.

Don¡¯t worry - most traders lose money, and their FOREX Trading strategy is based on the flawed logic we have just discussed - so not doing what they do makes total sense. Therefore, look for breakouts through support and resistance - and sell and buy respectively.

Its Tough Mentally - But it Makes Money!

Sure, it¡¯s hard to do - the majority don¡¯t agree with you - and no one likes to go against the majority. However, it¡¯s the right thing to do, to make your FOREX trading successful. Think about what we¡¯ve just said, and you¡¯ll see it makes logical sense.

Has this Happened to You?

How many times do traders buy into support, and the market breaks support, stops them out and continues to decline. On the other hand, another common scenario is, price never get to support - it simply goes higher - and the trader misses the chance to get in on the trend.

This type of trading is tough mentally - that¡¯s why 90% of traders don¡¯t do it - they want to be comfortable - well being comfortable is great, but you¡¯ll lose money.

Breakouts work, and if you use them in your FOREX Trading strategy, you won¡¯t be comfortable on entry - but you¡¯ll make money - and that will more than compensate.

The way to succeed in FOREX trading is to do what the losing majority don¡¯t do - then you can join the elite 10% of traders who make the big profits - try it and see!

Bollinger Bands Can Give You a Huge Trading Edge

One of the critical pieces of forex education for any Forex trader is to understand the concept of standard deviation of price and how to use volatility to their advantage.

If you understand the concept you can easily apply it with Bollinger bands which are an essential tool for all forex traders.

Let¡¯s look at why Bollinger Bands are so useful and profitable, when incorporated in your Forex Strategy.

If you don¡¯t know what standard deviation is simply check our article on the concept ¨C right, let¡¯s take a look at Bollinger bands.

Bollinger Bands Defined

Bollinger bands are simply volatility bands drawn either side of a moving average.

You calculate Bollinger bands using the standard deviation of price over the same period as moving averages the mean price, then the volatility bands are plotted above and below the moving average.

Moving averages are used to identify the underlying trend of currencies and Bollinger bands take this one step further by:

Combining the moving average of the currency with the volatility of the individual market (or the standard deviation) ¨C this then creates a trading envelope ¨C with a middle mean price (moving average and 2 x bands (expanding or contracting) either side that reflect volatility or standard deviation.

As prices move away from the longer-term average, the standard deviation rises - and thus the bands will fluctuate in varying amounts, away from the average.

Why they work

In any market, the value of a currency traded tends to rise slowly over the longer term.

Prices can and do spike quickly in the short term, but will normally return to the longer term moving average - which represents fair value.

The standard deviation of the outer bands (how far they are from the mean) shows how far prices are from longer-term value.

Most price spikes are caused by trader psychology with greed and fear to the fore and this can be graphically seen with Bollinger bands.

So how should you use Bollinger bands?

There are 3 main ways to use them.

1. Spotting price spikes

When the bands are a long way from the mean you can use Bollinger bands as profit taking signal on existing trades or use them to spot contrary trades.

2. Enter exisiting trends

If you have a good trend in the forex markets then you can use dips to the middle band to buy at fair value.

3. Entering new trends

When prices are trading in tight range and start to breakout with a change in volatility a great new trend could be emerging.

Bollinger bands can certainly give you a new dimension to your forex trading strategy and any currency trading system can benefit from the extra insight that they can give you.

A word of warning

Like all technical indicators you should not use Bollinger bands in isolation to enter trades, however combined with timing indicators such as, the stochastic or RSI, then you have a powerful combination for greater FX profits.

With regard to forex education, knowing what standard deviation is and how to apply the concept through Bollinger Bands, will give you a huge trading edge, so make sure you use them.

Online Forex Trading Strategies

Forex trading strategies are the key to successful forex trading or online currency trading. A knowledge of these forex trading strategies can mean the difference between a profit and a loss and it is therefore imperative that you fully understand the strategies used in forex trading.

Forex trading is very different from trading in stocks and using forex trading strategies will give you more advantages and help you realize even greater profits in the short term. There are a wide range of forex trading strategies available to investors and one of the most useful of these forex trading strategies is a strategy known as leverage.

This forex trading strategy is designed to allow online currency traders to avail of more funds than are deposited and by using this forex trading strategy you can maximize the forex trading benefits. Using this strategy you can actually utilize as much as 100 times the amount in your deposit account against any forex trade which will make backing higher yielding transactions even easier and therefore allowing better results in your forex trading

The leverage forex trading strategy is used on a regular basis and allows investors to take advantage of short term fluctuations in the forex market.

Another commonly used forex trading strategy is known as the stop loss order. This forex trading strategy is used to protect investors and it creates a predetermined point at which the investor will not trade. Using this forex trading strategy allows investors to minimize losses. This strategy can however, backfire and the investor can run the risk of stopping their forex trading which could actually go higher and it really is up to the individual trader to choose whether or not to use this forex trading strategy.

An automatic entry order is another of the forex trading strategies that is commonly used and this strategy is used to allow investors to enter into forex trading when the price is right for them. The price is predetermined and once reached the investor will automatically enter into the trading.

All these forex trading strategies are designed to help investors get the most from their forex trading and help to minimize their losses. As mentioned earlier knowledge of these forex trading strategies is vital if you wish to be successful in forex trading.

Learn Forex Trading - Which Forex Strategy Is Right For Me

Learning to trade Forex is not an easy task, but by no means is it difficult either. Learning to trade Forex does not require a great intellect or a college degree. Doctors have failed as traders and construction workers have become millionaires. Trading is all about discipline, determination and perseverance.

The key is to understand who you are as a trader and trade to your strength. Leveraging your strength can be magnified by deploying the appropriate Forex trading strategy. There are hundreds, if not thousands of Forex trading strategies out there. Logic will tell us that there is a currency strategy out there which leverages our strengths. It is not a one-size-fits-all world. To immediately cut to the chase and take away the magic, it all comes down to two basic Forex strategies; trend-following and range-bound. All Forex trading strategies use a variety of indicators and combinations, MACD, Moving Averages, Stochastic, Chart Patterns, Candlesticks, Pivot Points, Fibonacci ratios, Elliott Wave analysis, Bollinger Bands and the list goes on and on. Let¡¯s take away the magic again. These indicators and studies are merely measuring support and resistance and trend in the Forex market.

But which strategy really works? This is the age old question?

First, we must understand who we are as traders. Does our personality fit the pip sniper mode or does our disposition attract us more towards swing trading. Finding your trading personality will mean studying and experiencing the different time frames and associated Forex trading strategies. Over time you will notice a higher level of success and/or comfort trading one style over others. Pay attention! The market is telling you where your skill is more capable of extract consistent profits for the market. This is why journaling is so important to your Forex trading routine.

Secondly, if you are using someone else¡¯s strategy, a most of us are, deploy this strategy without change until you fully and completely understand all aspect of the strategy through back-testing and actual experience. As I was told; dance the dance you have been taught until you learn a dance of your own!

Don¡¯t fall into the trap of jumping from strategy to strategy or combining different strategies when the one you are using doesn¡¯t yield immediate success. This is only a recipe for disaster. Take the time to really understand the trading strategy. Study the components individually so a deeper understanding of the strategic mechanisms is mastered.

Above all, know when and when not to deploy this strategy. You will not find consistent success implementing a trend following system in a range-bound currency market.

So what¡¯s the right strategy for you? It is simple, the one that works. It doesn¡¯t matter if it is complicated or simple, trend-following or range-bound, uses Fibonacci studies, pivot points or both. If you understand the components, internalize its use, and drive consistent profits into your trading account, then you have your Forex trading strategy.

It doesn¡¯t matter what the experts say, your account balance is the ultimate judge and jury for your Forex trading strategy.

Swing Trading Strategy

Swing trading is a popular method of capitalizing on the short-term price variations of the stock market. It has earned a reputation of being a powerful method of maximizing profits at lower risks. The best swing trading strategy involves choosing the right stock and the right market. Swing traders usually choose the stocks that fluctuate at extreme ends. Swing trading strategy is employed in a stable market, because here the prices tend to have minor variations on which the swing trader can capitalize. In a rapidly rising or crashing market, swing trading strategy cannot be employed.

Newcomers to the stock market often choose swing trading owing to the low risk and shorter period involved. To achieve higher profits in this short period, the right swing trading strategy is to trade in stocks of big companies. These stocks, usually called large cap stocks, are widely traded on most stock exchanges. Their prices show higher variations compared to other stocks. This translates into more profits for the swing traders. A swing trader may follow a stock during its upward journey for a few days. In case the stock reverses its trend, the trader simply switches over to another rising stock. The choice of the right stock thus forms an inseparable part of a successful swing trading strategy.

Apart from the choice of stock, the choice of market plays a key role while deciding on a proper swing trading strategy. In a market that is on a rising or falling trend, the stock prices generally move in a single direction. There is not much of a variation by which the swing trader can profit. The best strategy here is to trade on the long term basis. A swing trader best operates on a stable market, where the index rises for some days and falls over the next few days. Although the value of major stocks remains roughly the same, the short-term variations provide the much required opportunity for the swing trader. The best swing trading strategy is thus the proper choice of the right stock and right market.

Forex News Trading Tip: How To Trade The FOMC

The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) decision on interest rates is one of the most powerful market movers in the forex market and when the markets move traders trading the news have the opportunity to make money.


The FOMC sets the discount rate or federal funds rate and because interest rates are set higher to induce foreign investment and therefore fight inflation during times of prosperity and lower to increase spending during recessions they are one of the main factors influencing the strength of the dollar.


Economic indicators play a huge role in the forex trading especially for traders who approach the market through fundamental analysis and trade the news. The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) interest rate decision is one of the most influential indicators for the US dollar and you can be sure after the news is released there is going to be volatility in the markets and volatility is what traders thrive on.


I have heard many 'traders' say never to trade the news and especially the FOMC. Although the FOMC interest decision is a news event and can fall under the category of through fundamental analysis I am a technician and I believe that charts always price everything in. However I guarantee the market does not know what exactly the Feds comments and decision will be, therefore it is not priced in yet and this will cause the markets to react when they do find out. This is confirmed by the change in price after the decision and the continuation in the days following.


I have been trading the Fed for eight years now and yes I have been burnt in the past and that is exactly how I have come to learn how to trade it properly. The most common pattern to trade the Fed is the whip-saw. But do not be fearful of it, embrace it. Here is how it happens, first there is a large spike one direction (traders come in and follow that direction)followed by a large spike in the opposite direction (those same traders now sell their first position at a loss and reverse their position - this is when I take a position in the direction of the original move)followed by an extended move back in the direction of the original spike (all the emotional trades are left sick to their stomachs) and I am left holding a very nice position setting myself up to capture a larger than average market move.


If this pattern does not play out exactly as outlined I stand on the sidelines and do not trade at all. Because the markets are moving fast in the period following the FOMC interest rate decision I am watching a very short time frame, mainly the one and five minute charts.

Forex Profits by buying and selling at the same time?

This article is one of a series which looks at the advantages and weaknesses of trading using the hedged, grid trading system to trade volatile markets.

We will look at how money can be made by breaking a number of trading truths or principles; * cut your losses and let your profit run and * there is nothing to gained by entering into buy and sell deals at the same time.

The hedged grid trading system uses the principle that one should be able to cash in at a gain no matter which way the market moves. No stops are therefore required at all. The only way this is logically possible is that one would have a buy and sell active at the same time. Most traders will say that that is trading suicide but let's take some to look at this more closely.

Let's say that a trader enters the market with a buy and sell active when a currency is at a level of say 100. The price then moves to 200. The buy will then be positive by 100 and the sell will be negative by 100. At this point we start breaking trading rules. We cash in our positive buy and the gain of 100 goes to our account. The sell is now carrying a loss of -100.

The grid system requires one to make sure that cash in on any movement in the market. To do this one would again enter into a buy and a sell transaction. Now, for convenience, let's assume that the price moves back to level 100.

The second sell has now gone positive by 100 and the second buy is carrying a loss of -100. According to the rules one would cash the sell in and another 100 will be added to your account. That brings the total cashed in at this point to 200.

Now the first sell that remained active has moved from level 200 where it was -100 to level 100 where it is now breaking even.

The 4 transactions added together now magically show a gain:- 1st buy cashed in +100, 2nd sell cashed in +100, 1st sell now breaking even and the 2nd buy is -100. This gives an overall a gain of 100 in total. We can liquidate all the transactions and have some champagne.

There are many, many other market movements that turn this strange buy and sell at the same time activity into gains. These will be covered in future articles and are covered in a free grid trading course which is available at the expert-4x.com website for those traders whose curiosity has been aroused.

There will be more on the hedged grid trading articles to be issued regularly. Please watch Forex Article Collection for future articles.

FOREX Trading Strategy - The Secret of Timing

Once you¡¯ve identified a trading opportunity, the next step is to decide EXACTLY when to buy - and this is where many traders go wrong.

Here we explain how to incorporate better market timing into your FOREX strategy - so that you can make bigger profits.

Most traders time their entry levels incorrectly, so here¡¯s the right way to do it:

Using Support and Resistance Correctly

A basic wisdom of market timing is ¡°buy low, sell high¡± - well, the reality is, if you try this in FOREX trading, you¡¯ll end up losing money. First, let¡¯s define what support and resistance means

A support level is a historical price that traders come in, and buy to ¡°support the market¡± ¨C and the more times it¡¯s tested, the more valid the support will be.

Conversely, a resistance level is a level on the charts that ¡°resisted prices from moving higher¡±- again the more times it¡¯s tested, the more significant it becomes.

Why Buy Low and Sell High doesn¡¯t Work

¡°Buy low, sell high¡± is accepted wisdom by the majority of traders - but this logic is fundamentally flawed - use it in FOREX trading, and you¡¯re asking for trouble. Why? - If you wait for a pullback, you¡¯re going to miss some of the biggest moves.

Think about it - what if a currency starts to trend and doesn¡¯t pullback? (How often have you seen this?) If you¡¯re waiting for a pullback that never comes, you¡¯ll never get in on the trade ¨C and you¡¯ll miss a major opportunity.

You Need to Feel Uncomfortable

When Trading in the FOREX market, you should usually feel uncomfortable (and that¡¯s why most traders don¡¯t make these trades) - as no one likes to buy or sell after the market has started trending - but doing this will make you money.

The fact is, the more comfortable you feel when entering a trade at support, the less likely the trade will be a big winner.

During any given year, most of the big moves in currencies, take place from new MARKET HIGHS with NO pullback.

If you base your FOREX Trading strategy around waiting for a warm comfy entry, at key support, you¡¯re going to miss the biggest and most profitable trades ¨C so step away from the losing majority of traders.

Your FOREX trading strategy should give you a different mindset - most traders ¡°buy low and sell high¡± - so you should ¡°buy high and sell higher¡± ¨C i.e. you should be doing the opposite of what the crowd are doing.

Don¡¯t worry - most traders lose money, and their FOREX Trading strategy is based on the flawed logic we have just discussed - so not doing what they do makes total sense. Therefore, look for breakouts through support and resistance - and sell and buy respectively.

Its Tough Mentally - But it Makes Money!

Sure, it¡¯s hard to do - the majority don¡¯t agree with you - and no one likes to go against the majority. However, it¡¯s the right thing to do, to make your FOREX trading successful. Think about what we¡¯ve just said, and you¡¯ll see it makes logical sense.

Has this Happened to You?

How many times do traders buy into support, and the market breaks support, stops them out and continues to decline. On the other hand, another common scenario is, price never get to support - it simply goes higher - and the trader misses the chance to get in on the trend.

This type of trading is tough mentally - that¡¯s why 90% of traders don¡¯t do it - they want to be comfortable - well being comfortable is great, but you¡¯ll lose money.

Breakouts work, and if you use them in your FOREX Trading strategy, you won¡¯t be comfortable on entry - but you¡¯ll make money - and that will more than compensate.

The way to succeed in FOREX trading is to do what the losing majority don¡¯t do - then you can join the elite 10% of traders who make the big profits - try it and see!

Bollinger Bands Can Give You a Huge Trading Edge

One of the critical pieces of forex education for any Forex trader is to understand the concept of standard deviation of price and how to use volatility to their advantage.

If you understand the concept you can easily apply it with Bollinger bands which are an essential tool for all forex traders.

Let¡¯s look at why Bollinger Bands are so useful and profitable, when incorporated in your Forex Strategy.

If you don¡¯t know what standard deviation is simply check our article on the concept ¨C right, let¡¯s take a look at Bollinger bands.

Bollinger Bands Defined

Bollinger bands are simply volatility bands drawn either side of a moving average.

You calculate Bollinger bands using the standard deviation of price over the same period as moving averages the mean price, then the volatility bands are plotted above and below the moving average.

Moving averages are used to identify the underlying trend of currencies and Bollinger bands take this one step further by:

Combining the moving average of the currency with the volatility of the individual market (or the standard deviation) ¨C this then creates a trading envelope ¨C with a middle mean price (moving average and 2 x bands (expanding or contracting) either side that reflect volatility or standard deviation.

As prices move away from the longer-term average, the standard deviation rises - and thus the bands will fluctuate in varying amounts, away from the average.

Why they work

In any market, the value of a currency traded tends to rise slowly over the longer term.

Prices can and do spike quickly in the short term, but will normally return to the longer term moving average - which represents fair value.

The standard deviation of the outer bands (how far they are from the mean) shows how far prices are from longer-term value.

Most price spikes are caused by trader psychology with greed and fear to the fore and this can be graphically seen with Bollinger bands.

So how should you use Bollinger bands?

There are 3 main ways to use them.

1. Spotting price spikes

When the bands are a long way from the mean you can use Bollinger bands as profit taking signal on existing trades or use them to spot contrary trades.

2. Enter exisiting trends

If you have a good trend in the forex markets then you can use dips to the middle band to buy at fair value.

3. Entering new trends

When prices are trading in tight range and start to breakout with a change in volatility a great new trend could be emerging.

Bollinger bands can certainly give you a new dimension to your forex trading strategy and any currency trading system can benefit from the extra insight that they can give you.

A word of warning

Like all technical indicators you should not use Bollinger bands in isolation to enter trades, however combined with timing indicators such as, the stochastic or RSI, then you have a powerful combination for greater FX profits.

With regard to forex education, knowing what standard deviation is and how to apply the concept through Bollinger Bands, will give you a huge trading edge, so make sure you use them.

Online Forex Trading Strategies

Forex trading strategies are the key to successful forex trading or online currency trading. A knowledge of these forex trading strategies can mean the difference between a profit and a loss and it is therefore imperative that you fully understand the strategies used in forex trading.

Forex trading is very different from trading in stocks and using forex trading strategies will give you more advantages and help you realize even greater profits in the short term. There are a wide range of forex trading strategies available to investors and one of the most useful of these forex trading strategies is a strategy known as leverage.

This forex trading strategy is designed to allow online currency traders to avail of more funds than are deposited and by using this forex trading strategy you can maximize the forex trading benefits. Using this strategy you can actually utilize as much as 100 times the amount in your deposit account against any forex trade which will make backing higher yielding transactions even easier and therefore allowing better results in your forex trading

The leverage forex trading strategy is used on a regular basis and allows investors to take advantage of short term fluctuations in the forex market.

Another commonly used forex trading strategy is known as the stop loss order. This forex trading strategy is used to protect investors and it creates a predetermined point at which the investor will not trade. Using this forex trading strategy allows investors to minimize losses. This strategy can however, backfire and the investor can run the risk of stopping their forex trading which could actually go higher and it really is up to the individual trader to choose whether or not to use this forex trading strategy.

An automatic entry order is another of the forex trading strategies that is commonly used and this strategy is used to allow investors to enter into forex trading when the price is right for them. The price is predetermined and once reached the investor will automatically enter into the trading.

All these forex trading strategies are designed to help investors get the most from their forex trading and help to minimize their losses. As mentioned earlier knowledge of these forex trading strategies is vital if you wish to be successful in forex trading.

Learn Forex Trading - Which Forex Strategy Is Right For Me

Learning to trade Forex is not an easy task, but by no means is it difficult either. Learning to trade Forex does not require a great intellect or a college degree. Doctors have failed as traders and construction workers have become millionaires. Trading is all about discipline, determination and perseverance.

The key is to understand who you are as a trader and trade to your strength. Leveraging your strength can be magnified by deploying the appropriate Forex trading strategy. There are hundreds, if not thousands of Forex trading strategies out there. Logic will tell us that there is a currency strategy out there which leverages our strengths. It is not a one-size-fits-all world. To immediately cut to the chase and take away the magic, it all comes down to two basic Forex strategies; trend-following and range-bound. All Forex trading strategies use a variety of indicators and combinations, MACD, Moving Averages, Stochastic, Chart Patterns, Candlesticks, Pivot Points, Fibonacci ratios, Elliott Wave analysis, Bollinger Bands and the list goes on and on. Let¡¯s take away the magic again. These indicators and studies are merely measuring support and resistance and trend in the Forex market.

But which strategy really works? This is the age old question?

First, we must understand who we are as traders. Does our personality fit the pip sniper mode or does our disposition attract us more towards swing trading. Finding your trading personality will mean studying and experiencing the different time frames and associated Forex trading strategies. Over time you will notice a higher level of success and/or comfort trading one style over others. Pay attention! The market is telling you where your skill is more capable of extract consistent profits for the market. This is why journaling is so important to your Forex trading routine.

Secondly, if you are using someone else¡¯s strategy, a most of us are, deploy this strategy without change until you fully and completely understand all aspect of the strategy through back-testing and actual experience. As I was told; dance the dance you have been taught until you learn a dance of your own!

Don¡¯t fall into the trap of jumping from strategy to strategy or combining different strategies when the one you are using doesn¡¯t yield immediate success. This is only a recipe for disaster. Take the time to really understand the trading strategy. Study the components individually so a deeper understanding of the strategic mechanisms is mastered.

Above all, know when and when not to deploy this strategy. You will not find consistent success implementing a trend following system in a range-bound currency market.

So what¡¯s the right strategy for you? It is simple, the one that works. It doesn¡¯t matter if it is complicated or simple, trend-following or range-bound, uses Fibonacci studies, pivot points or both. If you understand the components, internalize its use, and drive consistent profits into your trading account, then you have your Forex trading strategy.

It doesn¡¯t matter what the experts say, your account balance is the ultimate judge and jury for your Forex trading strategy.

Swing Trading Strategy

Swing trading is a popular method of capitalizing on the short-term price variations of the stock market. It has earned a reputation of being a powerful method of maximizing profits at lower risks. The best swing trading strategy involves choosing the right stock and the right market. Swing traders usually choose the stocks that fluctuate at extreme ends. Swing trading strategy is employed in a stable market, because here the prices tend to have minor variations on which the swing trader can capitalize. In a rapidly rising or crashing market, swing trading strategy cannot be employed.

Newcomers to the stock market often choose swing trading owing to the low risk and shorter period involved. To achieve higher profits in this short period, the right swing trading strategy is to trade in stocks of big companies. These stocks, usually called large cap stocks, are widely traded on most stock exchanges. Their prices show higher variations compared to other stocks. This translates into more profits for the swing traders. A swing trader may follow a stock during its upward journey for a few days. In case the stock reverses its trend, the trader simply switches over to another rising stock. The choice of the right stock thus forms an inseparable part of a successful swing trading strategy.

Apart from the choice of stock, the choice of market plays a key role while deciding on a proper swing trading strategy. In a market that is on a rising or falling trend, the stock prices generally move in a single direction. There is not much of a variation by which the swing trader can profit. The best strategy here is to trade on the long term basis. A swing trader best operates on a stable market, where the index rises for some days and falls over the next few days. Although the value of major stocks remains roughly the same, the short-term variations provide the much required opportunity for the swing trader. The best swing trading strategy is thus the proper choice of the right stock and right market.

Forex News Trading Tip: How To Trade The FOMC

The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) decision on interest rates is one of the most powerful market movers in the forex market and when the markets move traders trading the news have the opportunity to make money.


The FOMC sets the discount rate or federal funds rate and because interest rates are set higher to induce foreign investment and therefore fight inflation during times of prosperity and lower to increase spending during recessions they are one of the main factors influencing the strength of the dollar.


Economic indicators play a huge role in the forex trading especially for traders who approach the market through fundamental analysis and trade the news. The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) interest rate decision is one of the most influential indicators for the US dollar and you can be sure after the news is released there is going to be volatility in the markets and volatility is what traders thrive on.


I have heard many 'traders' say never to trade the news and especially the FOMC. Although the FOMC interest decision is a news event and can fall under the category of through fundamental analysis I am a technician and I believe that charts always price everything in. However I guarantee the market does not know what exactly the Feds comments and decision will be, therefore it is not priced in yet and this will cause the markets to react when they do find out. This is confirmed by the change in price after the decision and the continuation in the days following.


I have been trading the Fed for eight years now and yes I have been burnt in the past and that is exactly how I have come to learn how to trade it properly. The most common pattern to trade the Fed is the whip-saw. But do not be fearful of it, embrace it. Here is how it happens, first there is a large spike one direction (traders come in and follow that direction)followed by a large spike in the opposite direction (those same traders now sell their first position at a loss and reverse their position - this is when I take a position in the direction of the original move)followed by an extended move back in the direction of the original spike (all the emotional trades are left sick to their stomachs) and I am left holding a very nice position setting myself up to capture a larger than average market move.


If this pattern does not play out exactly as outlined I stand on the sidelines and do not trade at all. Because the markets are moving fast in the period following the FOMC interest rate decision I am watching a very short time frame, mainly the one and five minute charts.

Forex Profits by buying and selling at the same time?

This article is one of a series which looks at the advantages and weaknesses of trading using the hedged, grid trading system to trade volatile markets.

We will look at how money can be made by breaking a number of trading truths or principles; * cut your losses and let your profit run and * there is nothing to gained by entering into buy and sell deals at the same time.

The hedged grid trading system uses the principle that one should be able to cash in at a gain no matter which way the market moves. No stops are therefore required at all. The only way this is logically possible is that one would have a buy and sell active at the same time. Most traders will say that that is trading suicide but let's take some to look at this more closely.

Let's say that a trader enters the market with a buy and sell active when a currency is at a level of say 100. The price then moves to 200. The buy will then be positive by 100 and the sell will be negative by 100. At this point we start breaking trading rules. We cash in our positive buy and the gain of 100 goes to our account. The sell is now carrying a loss of -100.

The grid system requires one to make sure that cash in on any movement in the market. To do this one would again enter into a buy and a sell transaction. Now, for convenience, let's assume that the price moves back to level 100.

The second sell has now gone positive by 100 and the second buy is carrying a loss of -100. According to the rules one would cash the sell in and another 100 will be added to your account. That brings the total cashed in at this point to 200.

Now the first sell that remained active has moved from level 200 where it was -100 to level 100 where it is now breaking even.

The 4 transactions added together now magically show a gain:- 1st buy cashed in +100, 2nd sell cashed in +100, 1st sell now breaking even and the 2nd buy is -100. This gives an overall a gain of 100 in total. We can liquidate all the transactions and have some champagne.

There are many, many other market movements that turn this strange buy and sell at the same time activity into gains. These will be covered in future articles and are covered in a free grid trading course which is available at the expert-4x.com website for those traders whose curiosity has been aroused.

There will be more on the hedged grid trading articles to be issued regularly. Please watch Forex Article Collection for future articles.

Money Management Principles

Trade With Sufficient Captial

One of the worst blunders that forex traders can make is attempting to trade without sufficient capital.

The trader with limited capital not only will be a worried trader, always looking to minimize losses beyond the point of realistic trading, but he will also frequently be taken out of the trading game before he can realize any sense of success trading the method(s) or patterns.

Exercise Discipline

Discipline is probably one of the most overused words in forex trading education. However, despite the clich¨¦, discipline continues to be the most important behaviour one can master to become a profitable trader. Discipline is the ability to plan your work and work your plan.

It¡¯s the ability to give your trade the time to develop without hastily taking yourself out of the market simply because you are uncomfortable with risk. Discipline is also the ability to continue to trade the methods and patterns even after you¡¯ve suffered losses. Do your best to cultivate the degree of discipline required to be a world-class trader.

Employ Risk-to-Reward Ratios

The following shows you possible risk-to reward ratios, and the win ratios required to break even in a trading system.

Risk-to-Reward Ratio (in pips)and Win Ratio Required to Break Even(%)

40/20 (2 to 1) = 67%, 40/40 (1 to1) = 50%, 40/60 (1 to 1.5) = 40%,
40/80 (1 to 2) = 33.5%,
60/20 (3 to 1) = 75%,
60/60 (1 to 1) = 50%,
60 /90 (1 to 1.5) = 40%,
60/120 (1 to 2) = 33.5%

Important Note

Never risk more pips on a trade then you plan to make. It doesn¡¯t make sense to risk 100 pips in order to make only 10. Why? See below example.

Profit taking level (pips): 10
Stop used or pips at risk: 100

You win 10 times which makes 100 winning pips. You ONLY lose once and have to give back all profits!!!

This type of trading makes no sense and you will lose on the long term guaranteed!

Forex Money Management

Forex money management is one of the most important things you can learn before you actually begin making live trades.

The money management principles discussed here will teach you how to avoid the costly mistakes many new traders make, often to the degree that they lose their entire investment on the first handful of trades.

Psychology is really the most important factor to money management in forex. You have to be able to separate yourself from any emotional attachment you may have to your money. This is not very easy to do, but it works and it can be done.

If you allow yourself to become emotional on a trade, you will not exit the trade properly, and this could mean holding on to a trade when you should have let it go, or letting go before the trade had a chance to turn profitable.

First and foremost, you should consider leverage and risk. It is advisable that you never risk more than two percent of your account balance on any trade. However, some go further and allow for as much as ten percent, but never more than that. This gives you the ability to withstand market fluctuations, and if the trade goes bad, you still have money to try again. You should never operate under the assumption that you will profit from every trade. You should also plan for losses. Therefore, most traders will tell you that the best thing to do is to keep your gains large and your losses small. Develop your trading strategy around this idea.

Keep track of your gains and losses. Keeping accurate and detailed records of your account activity will allow you to see whether or not the strategy is working, or if it needs to be re-built.

Never go blindly into trading without a way to keep track of results. You will lose all of your funds and never understand why it happened.

Finally, it is highly advisable that you first practice a strategy on a demo account. Nearly all brokers offer a virtual account whereupon you make trades in real-time, but with imaginary money, so nothing is risked. This is the best way to test a strategy before you put your real money on the line.

However, be careful, once again, of the psychology of trading. When you play with fake money, nothing is risked. When real money is on the line, you must not get emotional. If you do, you will find yourself with very different results, most likely losses, than you had with the demo account.

Stock Market Money Management Skills

Let's start by saying: You can't be afraid to take a loss. The investors that are the most successful in the stock market are the people who are willing to lose money.

Having a strategy and/or a specific philosophy is an excellent starting point to investing but it won't mean a thing if you can't manage your money. As I have said a million times: without cash, you can't invest.

Most investors spend far too much time trying to figure out the exact pivot point or perfect entry strategy and too little time on money management. The most important aspect to investing is cutting your losses, 90% of the battle is won by protecting your capital, regardless of the strategy.

Most successful money managers only make money 50-55% of time. This means that successful individual investors are going to be wrong about half the time. Since this is the case, you better be ready to accept your losses and cut them while they are small. By cutting losses quickly and allowing your winners to ride the up-trend, you will consistently finish the year with black ink.

Here are some methods that can help you with money management:

Set a predetermined stop loss (you must know where to cut the loss before it happens ¡°this will help control emotions when the time comes)." A 7-10% stop loss insurance policy is best. Tighten the stop loss range in down markets and loosen the range in strong bull markets.

Establish smaller positions if your account has had a recent losing streak (the losses may be telling you important information such as a critical turning point, it may be time to sell and get out).

If you think you are wrong or if the market is moving against you, cut your position in half ¡°this is the best insurance policy on Wall Street."

If you cut your position in half two times, you will be left with only 25% of the original position ¡°the remaining stock is no longer a big deal as your risk is very low."

If you sell out of a trade prematurely based on a minor correction, you can always reestablish the position again.

Initial position sizing plays a big part in money management ¡°don't take on too big of a position relative to your portfolio size. Novice investors should never use their entire account on one trade no matter how small the account

Know when you would like to get out of a position after a considerable profit has been made. Signs of topping could be a climax run, a spinning top or higher highs on lower volume.

Finally, cut any trade that doesn't act the way you originally analyzed it to act.

With these guidelines, you will be well on your way to solid money management skills that will help you profit in Wall Street year in and year out. Always remember, you are going to take-on losing trades at least half of the time. This is a tough concept to accept for most novice investors but it a fact. If you don't cut losses, you won't be investing for very long as you will run out of cash and the desire to continue to invest.

Forex Money Management by FX Master

Money management is a critical point that shows difference between winners and losers. It was proved that if 100 traders start trading using a system with 60% winning odds, only 5 traders will be in profit at the end of the year. In spite of the 60% winning odds 95% of traders will lose because of their poor money management. Money management is the most significant part of any trading system. Most of traders don't understand how important it is.

It's important to understand the concept of money management and understand the difference between it and trading decisions. Money management represents the amount of money you are going to put on one trade and the risk your going to accept for this trade.

There are different money management strategies. They all aim at preserving your balance from high risk exposure.

First of all, you should understand the following term Core equity
Core equity = Starting balance - Amount in open positions.

If you have a balance of 10,000$ and you enter a trade with 1,000$ then your core equity is 9,000$. If you enter another 1,000$ trade,your core equity will be 8,000$

It's important to understand what's meant by core equity since your money management will depend on this equity.

We will explain here one model of money management that has proved high anual return and limited risk. The standard account that we will be discussing is 100,000$ account with 20:1 leverage . Anyway,you can adapt this strategy to fit smaller or bigger trading accounts.

Money management strategy

Your risk per a trade should never exceed 3% per trade. It's better to adjust your risk to 1% or 2%
We prefer a risk of 1% but if you are confident in your trading system then you can lever your risk up to 3%

1% risk of a 100,000$ account = 1,000$

You should adjust your stop loss so that you never lose more than 1,000$ per a single trade.

If you are a short term trader and you place your stop loss 50 pips below/above your entry point .
50 pips = 1,000$
1 pips = 20$

The size of your trade should be adjusted so that you risk 20$/pip. With 20:1 leverage,your trade size will be 200,000$

If the trade is stopped, you will lose 1,000$ which is 1% of your balance.

This trade will require 10,000$ = 10% of your balance.

If you are a long term trader and you place your stop loss 200 pips below/above your entry point.
200 pips = 1,000$
1 pip = 5$

The size of your trade should be adjusted so that you risk 5$/pip. With 20:1 leverage, your trade size will be 50,000$

If the trade is stopped, you will lose 1,000$ which is 1% of your balance.

This trade will require 2,500$ = 2.5% of your balance.

This's just an example. Your trading balance and leverage provided by your broker may differ from this formula. The most important is to stick to the 1% risk rule. Never risk too much in one trade. It's a fatal mistake when a trader lose 2 or 3 trades in a row, then he will be confident that his next trade will be winning and he may add more money to this trade. This's how you can blow up your account in a short time! A disciplined trader should never let his emotions and greed control his decisions.

Diversification

Trading one currnecy pair will generate few entry signals. It would be better to diversify your trades between several currencies. If you have 100,000$ balance and you have open position with 10,000$ then your core equity is 90,000$. If you want to enter a second position then you should calculate 1% risk of your core equity not of your starting balance!. Itmeans that the second trade risk should never be more than 900$. If you want to enter a 3rd position and your core equity is 80,000$ then the risk per 3rd trade should not exceed 800$

It's important that you diversify your prders between currencies that have low correlation.

For example, If you have long EUR/USD then you shouldn't long GBP/USD since they have high correlation. If you have long EUR/USD and GBP/USD positions and risking 3% per trade then your risk is 6% since the trades will tend to end in same direction.

If you want to trade both EUR/USD and GBP/USD and your standard position size from your money management is 10,000$ (1% risk rule) then you can trade 5,000$ EUR/USD and 5,000$ GBP/USD. In this way,you will be risking 0.5% on each position.

The Martingale and anti-martingale strategy

It's very important to understand these 2 strategies.

-Martingale rule = increasing your risk when losing !

This's a startegy adopted by gamblers which claims that you should increase the size of you trades when losing. It's applied in gambling in the following way Bet 10$,if you lose bet 20$,if you lose bet 40$,if you lose bet 80$,if you lose bet 160$..etc

This strategy assumes that after 4 or 5 losing trades,your chance to win is bigger so you should add more money to recover your loss! The truth is that the odds are same in spite of your previous loss! If you have 5 losses in a row ,still your odds for 6th bet 50:50! The same fatal mistake can be made by some novice traders. For example,if a trader started with a abalance of 10,000$ and after 4 losing trades (each is 1,000$) his balance is 6000$. The trader will think that he has higher chances of winning the 5th trade then he will increase ths size of his position 4 times to recover his loss. If he lose,his balance will be 2,000$!! He will never recover from 2,000$ to his startiing balance 10,000$. A disciplined trader should never use such gambling method unless he wants to lose his money in a short time.

-Anti-martingale rule = increase your risk when winning& decrease your risk when losing

It means that the trader should adjust the size of his positions according to his new gains or losses.
Example: Trader A starts with a balance of 10,000$. His standard trade size is 1,000$
After 6 months,his balance is 15,000$. He should adjust his trade size to 1,500$

Trader B starts with 10,000$.His standard trade size is 1,000$
After 6 months his balance is 8,000$. He should adjust his trade size to 800$

High return strategy

This strategy is for traders looking for higher return and still preserving their starting balance.

According to your money management rules,you should be risking 1% of you balance. If you start with 10,000$ and your trade size is 1,000$ (Risk 1%) After 1 year,your balance is 15,000$. Now you have your initial balance + 5,000$ profit. You can increase your potential profit by risking more from this profit while restricting your initial balance risk to 1%. For example,you can calcualte your trade in the following pattern:

1% risk 10,000$ (initial balance)+ 5% of 5,000$ (profit)

In this way,you will have more potential for higher returns and on the same time you are still risking 1% of your initial deposit.