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Posts Tagged ‘Trading’

Stock Trading Disaster (std) Prevention

December 27th, 2009 admin No comments

I thought such an eye-catching title would be appropriate for an article on risk management. Often times, beginning traders forget the fundamentals of proper trading in their quest for instant riches in the stock market. Those of us who have been trading for some time now are fully aware of the danger in that type of thinking.

I was a cocky beginning trader. Soon after attending a stock trading seminar, I had several big wins. In my own mind, I was the exception to any and all stock market trading principles. I could do no wrong. My short-lived reign as a trading Adonis came to an abrupt end. All my money began raining down into the pockets of real stock market professionals. Fortunately, I wised up before it was too late.

In short, I was a young punk who knew everything about nothing. I often times had to learn things the hard. Learning to trade in the stock market was no exception. So, here are my top three ways to prevent an STD.

#3 Way To Avoid An STD

Perform thorough market research! Taking proper research for granted is a one-way ticket to Brokeville. Trust me, I know. Due diligence is required in order to side step a poor stock decision. Remember, getting into a bad trade is simple…getting out is costly. Give market research the time and attention it deserves.

#2 Way To Avoid an STD

Remove hope from your emotional make up when trading! Wishful thinking is a dangerous mindset to be in when you are a stock trader. Hope and wishful thinking lead to irrational decisions based on emotions rather than factual information. Going down with the ship is far from an act of nobility. You will make mistakes. As a trader, you must be willing to make corrections quickly. In the stock market, making too many errors, too fast will certainly cause you to be prematurely ousted from the markets if you do not adhere to the method #1.

#1 Way To Avoid an STD

Make use of a protective stop loss! After placing your order, ALWAYS set a protective stop. Failure is not to far off in the distance for a trader who handles the duties of risk management in the absence of a stop loss. A stop loss is not perfect but the only insurance policy a trader has against stock trading career ending losses. Stop being a philanthropic trader who continues to give money away to the markets.

Using a protective stop loss continues to be the most effective method of risk management. Fortunately, it is also the easiest of the three to apply. Methods 1 and 2 are developed over time as you gain experience. Simply use my top three ways of preventing an STD and you have cut your chances of getting burned.

How to Choose a Trading Platform

December 26th, 2009 admin No comments

Choosing a forex trading platform can be very hard if you dont know what to look for.In this article you will learn the most important things that a good forex trading platform should have.Hopefully after reading this article you will have everything you need to choose a good forex broker & platform   So for you to learn how to choose the right platform the will work well for you,you just need to continue reading this article and also refer your friend to this page in other for them to get it right,when choosing a trader platform.

 How reliable a company is. The easiest way to go here would just be to go to some brandname company. Of course, with smaller investments it might be complicated, but many of the big names also offer mini-accounts which start from anywhere between $300 – $2000 minimum. Additionally, get lost into some investing forums and see what other people are suggesting. And then preferrably ask about the platform/firm they suggested in some other forum as well. This way you will get general information about experiences with the firm and additionally, when people are ready to suggest something, it often means that THEY consider the firm reliable

 

- How big are the commissions? For forex and stocks the commissions are usually calculated differently. For stocks there is often a certain fee for a trade – anywhere between $4 – $40 or per trade…eg. $0.02 per stock. With forex the commissions are often automatically added into the spreads ( the difference between the ask and bid price), thus no extra commission is taken. I myself have looked around and considering that… 

 

1. I want to day trade not invest for longer term and

 

2. My initial investing capital will be only $1k-$5k

 

 …the commissions really need to be small. I won’t be looking to earn 10% with a stock and I won’t be working with big numbers. So a $20 commissions on stocks are pretty much killers…buy+sell=$40 only for commissions..and $40 and if I have just $1000 to play with this means that the stock price would have to move to my desired direction at least 4% just not to lose with this deal. And this is a killer. Especially if, as a day trader, I would be happy to take just 1% of profit per deal. So instead I suggest you to find a firm that offers eg. $4 per trade or $0.01 per share.  With forex – I have actually already tried to play on forex, without any knowledge of the market, just to try it out. The firm I used had 10 pip spread for mini accounts ( min deposit $25 )…and as I didn’t know a thing about pips and such ( if you don’t have any clue what pip is, check the forex channel on this site..there will be an introduction to forex markets soon) and only now I can say it’s a killer. Good platforms usually offer only a 2-5 pip spread and this is a lot better, independent of your portfolio value.

 

- With forex and small capital you also want to know what kind of leverage they are offering. Forex is good from the perspective that you might only have $1000 but you could buy currencies for $100k ( this case of course, you are risking all your money, but the possibility here is important). The leverage is different with different online brokers, usually between 50:1 and 400:1. I guess 100:1 or 200:1 is pretty good already while 50:1 might not do it.

 

- How does their platform look? While other people might say that this or that platform is very good, you might end up hating it. So I suggest you to register for free demo accounts on different sites and see yourself which you would be most comfortable with. For example if you don’t have a laptop with you all the time, it might be a good choice to go for a web-based platform, while if you do have access to your computer all the time, I would suggest a non-web-based platform as these tend to be a bit faster to use. But that again might be my personal fetish. And my 10-pip firm had web-based platform so I might not be as objective here as I could.

Tip #1 Real Time Quotes

This is extremely important. Forex trading is done 24 hours a day and you want to have live quotes. With live quotes you can be in full control of your funds and check them whenever you want.

Make sure to check if the broker platform offer live quotes 24 hours a day. This is really important i cannot stress this enough.

Make sure to check so the broker don’t slow the execution of the orders. This way you will enter a market at a different time than you wanted.

So make sure that the broker don’t slow the execution orders.

Tip #2 Easy to Use

The software you use should be easy to understand. You should be able to start trading immediately. Skip systems that take weeks to learn. They should be easy to use, that’s it.

You should also try to pick a software that doesn’t need any download, that you can access from every computer.

You could choose to download a software but make sure that it got live quotes.

Support

This is very important. Your broker shall provide 24 hours support no question about it. The forex market never rests and if you need assistance you should get it fast.

A good tip is to contact their support about any questions you have before you buy their services.

Trading Rates

Be sure to check if the software allows a freeze option when you decide to buy or sell. This way you get the rate you freeze and not the actual rate that occurs when the buy or sell is processed seconds later.

 Spreads

The spread is different from broker to broker. Make sure to check which spread the broker have. If they have larger spreads then the market have to move in your favor more than it would have if the spread was smaller.

harder to make a profit if the spread is larger so try picking a software that have a small spread.

 

10 Tips To Succeed In Trading Currency Commodity

December 24th, 2009 admin No comments

Whatever the job type, everyones ultimate goal is to succeed and gain surplus. You need to have the right knowledge in order to become successful. Being a business person, you should learn the most reliable and right way to become successful in trading market. Learning the trading commodities concept requires a trader to use different trading tricks, and by using law of charts. This can help in profiting from trading commodities.
In trading commodities, to gain bigger profits and earn large amount of money is to identify the market trends as quickly as you can before anyone else finds it. Currency trading can have many supports or resistance at the same time. If you are quick in determine the market trend then you can earn good profit. Trend is not limited to a specific time. Market trend can change at any time including intra-day, daily, weekly or even monthly.
Some trading commodities tools are available to help you identify these trends. Given below are some trading style for you :
1. Look out for trading up of prices. If you see a trading up in the trend it is advisable to buy at that time. In order to overcome the anticipative resistance, enter into the buy signals which are more than the current prices. On the other hand, if the trading down occurs, you should consider selling. Look for selling opportunities. To break the anticipative support, you must do exactly of that when trading up occurs i.e. to enter those sell signals which are well lower than the current prices.
2. You should look for optional objectives depending on whether it is short or long. You should consider short for anticipative support and long for next level resistance.
3. You should always have a protective stop on your trades till it hits.
Pay attention to some of the factors given below to make sure you know about the opportunities
4. The best time to look for buying opportunity is when the behavior of market changes from normal to bullish.
5. When the behavior is bullish you should hold protective stops for long positions which are below support level.
6. You should let go of the long positions if status changes to neutral.
7. Start finding short positions if the status changes to bearish from bullish. Bearish status is a good opportunity to find selling opportunities.
8. With bearish status you should hold resistance on short positions with protective stops.
9. Let go of short positions when status changes to neutral.
10. Find long positions if status changes from bearish to bullish.
You should have the knowledge about what to expect in future related to market trends. Have knowledge about directional bearish and proprietary bullish market forecast and resistance and support. Listen to different comments about the trends. Always remember that change in market which can be either bullish or bearish is very important in deciding which position to let go and which opportunity to grab.

Financial Trading – so many markets, so little time

December 24th, 2009 admin No comments

Would you like to make money from trading but don’t know how to trade?
Have you heard of others making a killing on the markets and wished yourself in their position?
Trading covers a multitude of sins, or at least a multitude of markets. Mention “trading” to a non-trader and they’ll probably think of stock and shares but there are many other markets you can trade in. These include commodities, futures, indices, CFDs and options. They all have their pros and cons and some require specialized knowledge.
The most popular markets used by traders are stocks, commodities, futures, indices and forex. Some traders switch between markets, others stick to just one. Let’s highlight some of the similarities and differences between them.
Shares
In the USA there are over 40,000 shares so you have a lot of markets to choose from. You can’t deal in all of them so you need to home in on those that offer good trading opportunities using whatever trading methods you decide to use.
When buying shares you usually have to put up all the money at the time of sale. That might seem obvious but it’s not so with all markets. Some brokers offer a 50% margin with shares which means you can trade to the value of twice the amount in your account. This seems like a good deal but if your shares start to go down you’ll get a “margin call” and will either have to put more money in your account or sell the shares at a loss.
Shares are normally traded in lots of 100. If you want to trade an expensive share – and some shares are very expensive, particularly in the US markets – you need a considerable amount of money in your account.
It’s not easy to sell shares short. Selling short is a strange concept to many people who think of buying shares at a low price and selling then at a higher price. But it’s often easier to predict that a share will fall rather than rise so what you’d like to do is to sell it at a high price and then buy it back later at a low price. The net result is the same whatever the order of the deals – buy low, sell high.
However, you can’t sell something you don’t own so in order to sell shares short you must “borrow” them from your broker. This is not quite as straightforward as buying and not all shares are available for selling short.
Finally, share dealing takes place during market hours so if you don’t live in the country where they are being traded you must adjust your trading hours to suit.
Futures, commodities and indices
Commodities are goods such as corn, copper, crude oil, orange juice, oats, gold and wheat.
Technically, a futures contract is an agreement to make or accept delivery of a commodity on a certain day at a certain price. In practice this rarely happens unless you’re a manufacturer who actually wants the goods. The vast majority of futures traders are simply speculating on whether the price will go up or down and never take delivery of an item.
Futures contacts include commodities and also stock market indices such as the S&P 500, Dow Jones and the Russell. Indices are simply a composite of securities that provide an overall reading of the market or some section of it.
The S&P 500 (Standard & Poor’s 500) tracks 500 of the largest companies in the US market. The Dow Jones Industrial Average tracks only 30 of the largest and longest-established companies while the Russell 2000 is an index of smaller stocks.
Essentially, commodities and indices are futures and traded in much the same way although traders may use the terms interchangeably.
Unlike shares, futures can be sold short just as easily as they can be bought. Each futures contract has its own fluctuating price and many traders deal in just one lot contracts.
Brokers usually charge a flat fee commission per contract, often expressed as a “round turn” which is one buy and one sell transaction. This may be a few dollars, often less than the value of a point or two on the contract. If you’re trading a long time frame the commission is negligible but if you’re day trading and scalping for a few points here and there it becomes a considerable part of the cost.
Futures brokers usually offer a margin of around 20% of the value of the underlying instrument so you can control $10,000’s worth of a contract for maybe $2,000. However, the same rules apply – if you over-leverage your account you’ll receive a margin call or your positions will be closed at a loss. Margin and leverage are a two-edged sword.
Many brokers offer a demo account so you can get used to the trading platform and test your trading strategies before you put real money on the line.
Forex Currency Trading
Currency trading, foreign exchange or forex as it’s more commonly known, has fast become one of the most popular markets for private traders in recent years.
As its name suggests, it involves buying and selling foreign currency. The most commonly traded currencies are referenced against the US Dollar and are sometimes referred to as a “currency pair” even though you are only trading one instrument. For example, the GBPUSD is the UK Pound/US Dollar pair. A value of 1.7625 would mean that the one Pound is worth 1.7625 Dollars. Other popular pairs include the Euro (EURUSD), the Swiss Franc (USDCHF) and the Japanese Yen (USDJPY) although there are others.
So unlike shares and futures, you don’t have a mass of markets to choose from, but there is variety within forex currency trading to give you a range of markets to trade.
The value of each pair differs slightly but the minimum movement – called a “pip” – is worth approximately $10. The GBPUSD has been averaging 100-150 pips per day which would be $1000-1500. Many brokers let you trade half or even quarter-size lots which are useful when you’re starting out. Also, many brokers offer a demo account so you can practice before risking real money.
The total value of the forex market is worth trillions of dollars per day, far larger than shares or futures. It is also a truly international market with dealing taking place all around the globe 24 hours per day from Monday to Friday. You can, therefore, trade at any time of the day or night at times to suit you. It’s worth noting, however, that the bigger moves generally occur during the US and European trading sessions.
You can sell short forex just as easily as you can buy and brokers offer highly-leveraged accounts too – but the same warning regarding margins apply here as well.
Brokers tend not to charge a commission for trading forex and you will often see adverts for “commission free” trading. However, they make their money on the spread which is the difference between the buying price and the selling price. The spread is usually between 3 and 5 pips although some brokers may offer a 2 pip spread on some pairs, and some less-popular pairs may have a larger spread.
Paying on the spread is particularly useful when trading mini lots. A 3-pip spread on a quarter lot will be about $7.50 whereas on a full-size lot it would be $30. Again, the spread is more important when trading short time frames where you’re only aiming to make a few pips per trade. You need to build the spread into your trading system so you don’t overestimate the amount you might make per trade.
One interesting aspect of forex currency trading is that there is no central clearing house where absolute prices are quoted, unlike shares and futures. So it’s quite possible to see different brokers quoting slightly different prices for the same pair. As the market has become more efficient, this difference has reduced, in most cases, to a few pips but it highlights the importance of checking that the data you are using for analysis is the same – or close to – that used by your broker for placing your orders.
The market you decide to trade will depend on many things, not least of all, your budget, but also how many markets you want to look at and what hours you want to trade. There are trading vehicles to suit all preferences and pockets.

A Simple 5-step Trading Plan

December 23rd, 2009 admin No comments

As a beginning stock market trader, I frequently visited an unpleasant place called Loss Vegas. It was teeming with would be investors and traders with grand aspirations of making a killing in the stock market. Differing life experiences, bank account balances, and strategies separated them but they were all bound by the possibilities of great riches there for the taking. Some were even aware of the chances of success being less than ideal and were not deterred. I could be counted among those who would not be denied.

The numbers don’t lie! 9 out 10 stock traders will fail, miserably! That is the same ratio for starting a business. At least in the case of running a business, there’s a 5-year failure window. I would say that a very small minority of beginning traders makes it past their first year. The reason for such an unbalanced success/fail ratio is simple. 9 out of 10 people entering the market would be better categorized as gamblers and not traders. Yes, I too, was one of those gamblers masquerading as a stock market trader.

Successful traders employ proven, winning trade strategies. Most beginning traders systematically make the same mistake over and over again. Venturing into the market without a sound trading plan is financial suicide. Here is a guide to structuring your own winning trading strategy.

Many principles of running a successful business can be applied to stock trading. Having a trading plan is essential to the success of your new venture. Consider this trading plan to be your road map that guides you to stock trading mastery. Skipping this step will ensure your permanent residency in Loss Vegas.

The trading plan must outline the why or purpose for trading the markets. If your purpose is to simply make money, you are in for a rude awakening. The number one objective of a stock trader is to trade well NOT make money. Focusing on trading well will result in you making money. Making profitable trades is a by-product of trading well. Calculating profits while practicing your trade is counter-productive to your efforts. You certainly wouldn’t want a lawyer tabulating his fees while researching your case, would you? The same focus needs to be applied while you trade. There will be plenty of time for counting your windfall once you have closed out your position.

After committing yourself to learning to trade well, the next step in the process is executing the plan. This includes but is not limited to:

1. Conducting Market Research-stock selection, risk/reward ratios

2. Pinpointing Entry Points

3. Money Management- where to place protective stops

4. Establishing Exit Points

5. Trade Review

I use this exact process when trading stocks and options. Deviating from your trading plan can hinder your progression as a trader in two areas. First, the effectiveness of a trading strategy cannot be accurately measured when a trader is inconsistent in the execution of a trading strategy. And secondly, altering your strategy in the midst of a trade is hazardous to your wealth. A prime example would be moving your protective stop in the opposite direction of your trade. This allows for a wider, much riskier stop loss cushion. Moving protective stops in the opposite direction of the trade is a sure sign of a rookie trader.

Following this simple formula will not eliminate visits to Loss Vegas but will ensure shorter, less frequent stays. Happy trading and here’s to your success!

A Few Tips for Day Trading the Stock Market

December 23rd, 2009 admin No comments

Day trading the stock market involves the rapid buying and selling of stocks on a day-to-day basis. This technique is used to secure quick profits from the constant changes in stock values, minute to minute, second to second. It is rare that a day trader will remain in a trade over the course of a night into the next day. These trades are entered and exited in a matter of minutes.

The main question that most people ask when it comes to day trading is simple: ‘is it necessary to sit at a computer watching the markets ALL day long in order to be a successful day trader?’

The answer is no. It’s not necessary to sit at a computer all day long. There are a number of factors to consider, but generally the rule of day trading is to trade when everyone else is trading. In other words, trade in the morning.

As with all financial investments, day trading is risky – in fact, it’s one of the riskiest forms of trading out there. The stock prices rise or fall according to the behaviour of the market, which is entirely unpredictable. Day traders buy and sell shares rapidly in the hopes of gaining profits within the minutes and seconds they own those particular stocks. Simple to do in theory, harder to do in practice.

If you are constrained by a small amount of capital, you may not be able to buy large amounts of a stock, but buying only a small amount can add to the risk of a loss. And, obviously, it is impossible to predict with certainty which stocks will result in profits and which in losses. Even the best of traders must learn to accept both outcomes.

It’s also important to know that in day trading, it is the number of shares rather than the value of shares that should be the focus. If you day trade, you WILL face losses, but even for the more expensive stocks, the loss should be marginal, because prices do not usually fluctuate to an extreme degree over the course of just one day.

The day trading industry deals in a large variety of stocks and shares. Here are just a few:

Growth-Buying Shares – shares made from profit, which continue to grow in value. Eventually, these shares will begin to decline in price, and an experienced trader can usually predict the future of this type of share.

Small Caps – shares of companies which are on the rise and show no signs of stopping. Although these shares are generally cheap, they are a very risky investment for day traders. You’d be safer to go with large caps and/or mid-caps, which are much more secure and stable thanks to a premium.

Unloved Stocks – company stock that has not performed well in the past. Traders buy these shares in the hopes of generating profits if and when the stock rises in value. As with small caps, unloved stocks can be a risky choice for day traders.

These examples are NOT your only options when it comes to day trading stocks. The best way to determine which type of stock is right for you is to invest some time for careful research, a knowledge of market patterns, a solid strategy, and a disciplined trading plan.

The key to successful day trading is to be prepared. Know as much as possible about the industry before you begin actually trading. You need to learn to trade ONLY when the market gives the right signals, and ONLY when the volume of activity in the market supports a successful trading opportunity.

Financial Trading – So Many Markets

December 22nd, 2009 admin No comments

Trading covers a multitude of sins, or at least a multitude of markets. Mention “trading” to a non-trader and they’ll probably think of stock and shares but there
are many other markets you can trade in. These include commodities, futures, indices, CFDs and options. They all have their pros and cons and some require specialized knowledge.
The most popular markets used by traders are stocks, commodities, futures, indices and forex. Some traders switch between markets, others stick to just one. Let’s highlight some of the similarities and differences between them.
Shares
In the USA there are over 40,000 shares so you have a lot of markets to choose from. You can’t deal in all of them so you need to home in on those that offer good trading opportunities using whatever trading methods you decide to use.
When buying shares you usually have to put up all the money at the time of sale. That might seem obvious but it’s not so with all markets. Some brokers offer a 50%
margin with shares which means you can trade to the value of twice the amount in your account. This seems like a good deal but if your shares start to go down you’ll get a “margin call” and will either have to put more money in your account or sell the shares at a loss.
Shares are normally traded in lots of 100. If you want to trade an expensive share – and some shares are very expensive, particularly in the US markets – you need a considerable amount of money in your account.
It’s not easy to sell shares short. Selling short is a strange concept to many people who think of buying shares at a low price and selling then at a higher price.
But it’s often easier to predict that a share will fall rather than rise so what you’d like to do is to sell it at a high price and then buy it back later at a low price. The net result is the same whatever the order of the deals – buy low, sell high.
However, you can’t sell something you don’t own so in order to sell shares short you must “borrow” them from your broker. This is not quite as straightforward as buying and not all shares are available for selling short.
Finally, share dealing takes place during market hours so if you don’t live in the country where they are being traded you must adjust your trading hours to suit.
Futures, commodities and indices
Commodities are goods such as corn, copper, crude oil, orange juice, oats, gold and wheat.
Technically, a futures contract is an agreement to make or accept delivery of a commodity on a certain day at a certain price. In practice this rarely happens unless you’re a manufacturer who actually wants the goods. The vast majority of futures traders are simply speculating on whether the price will go up or down and never take delivery of an item.
Futures contacts include commodities and also stock market indices such as the S&P 500, Dow Jones and the Russell. Indices are simply a composite of securities that provide an overall reading of the market or some section of it.
The S&P 500 (Standard & Poor’s 500) tracks 500 of the largest companies in the US market. The Dow Jones Industrial Average tracks only 30 of the largest and longest-established companies while the Russell 2000 is an index of smaller stocks.
Essentially, commodities and indices are futures and traded in much the same way although traders may use the terms interchangeably.
Unlike shares, futures can be sold short just as easily as they can be bought. Each futures contract has its own fluctuating price and many traders deal in just one lot contracts.
Brokers usually charge a flat fee commission per contract, often expressed as a “round turn” which is one buy and one sell transaction. This may be a few dollars,
often less than the value of a point or two on the contract. If you’re trading a long time frame the commission is negligible but if you’re day trading and scalping for a few points here and there it becomes a considerable part of the cost.
Futures brokers usually offer a margin of around 20% of the value of the underlying instrument so you can control $10,000’s worth of a contract for maybe $2,000.
However, the same rules apply – if you over-leverage your account you’ll receive a margin call or your positions will be closed at a loss. Margin and leverage are a double-edged sword.
Many brokers offer a demo account so you can get used to the trading platform and test your trading strategies before you put real money on the line.
Forex Currency Trading
Currency trading, foreign exchange or forex as it’s more commonly known, has fast become one of the most popular markets for private traders in recent years.
As its name suggests, it involves buying and selling foreign currency. The most commonly traded currencies are referenced against the US Dollar and are sometimes referred to as a “currency pair” even though you are only trading one instrument. For example, the GBPUSD is the UK Pound/US Dollar pair. A value of 1.7625 would
mean that the one Pound is worth 1.7625 Dollars. Other popular pairs include the Euro (EURUSD), the Swiss Franc (USDCHF) and the Japanese Yen (USDJPY) although there are others.
So unlike shares and futures, you don’t have a mass of markets to choose from, but there is variety within forex currency trading to give you a range of markets to trade.
The value of each pair differs slightly but the minimum movement – called a “pip” – is worth approximately $10. The GBPUSD has been averaging 100-150 pips per day
which would be $1000-1500. Many brokers let you trade half or even quarter-size lots which are useful when you’re starting out. Also, many brokers offer a demo account so you can practice before risking real money.
The total value of the forex market is worth trillions of dollars per day, far larger than shares or futures. It is also a truly international market with dealing
taking place all around the globe 24 hours per day from Monday to Friday. You can, therefore, trade at any time of the day or night at times to suit you. It’s worth noting, however, that the bigger moves generally occur during the US and European trading sessions.
You can sell short forex just as easily as you can buy and brokers offer highly-leveraged accounts too – but the same warning regarding margins apply here as well.
Brokers tend not to charge a commission for trading forex and you will often see adverts for “commission free” trading. However, they make their money on the spread which is the difference between the buying price and the selling price. The spread is usually between 3 and 5 pips although some brokers may offer a 2 pip spread on some pairs, and some less-popular pairs may have a larger spread.
Paying on the spread is particularly useful when trading mini lots. A 3-pip spread on a quarter lot will be about $7.50 whereas on a full-size lot it would be $30.
Again, the spread is more important when trading short time frames where you’re only aiming to make a few pips per trade. You need to build the spread into your trading system so you don’t overestimate the amount you might make per trade.
One interesting aspect of forex currency trading is that there is no central clearing house where absolute prices are quoted, unlike shares and futures. So it’s quite possible to see different brokers quoting slightly different prices for the same pair. As the market has become more efficient, this difference has reduced,
in most cases, to a few pips but it highlights the importance of checking that the data you are using for analysis is the same – or close to – that used by your broker for placing your orders.
The market you decide to trade will depend on many things, not least of all, your budget, but also how many markets you want to look at and what hours you want to trade. There are trading vehicles to suit all preferences and pockets.

Laying Out the Path of Success Through Disciplines in Forex Trading

December 14th, 2009 admin No comments

Forex trading can take a person from rags to riches. However, though this field offers opportunity to maximize one’s wealth, one needs to follow proper strategies to turn opportunity into return. Not many people believe in having sound understanding of the forex logic and as a result they step down in the market with no confidence and discipline.

Why talk about Forex Discipline?

We all know that without following a proper discipline and a laid out method in any monetary transaction, we would be surely doomed to failure. Money management is not possible without following a proper discipline. Losses are inevitable to follow. To achieve success one should follow discipline and the same applies to forex transactions too.

Keeping Oneself in the Self Discipline Mode

The biggest application of Forex Trading is that it provides opportunity for immediate wealth creation. But, this can materialize only for those who approach the foreign exchange market equipped with Forex Trading strategies. The strategies should be well organized, unique and tactful so that it is easily understood by anyone in this complicated world.

The best foreign exchange trading disciplines

There is a school of thought existing amongst some Forex traders who believe that the very best traders have complicated Forex trading strategies and are simply blessed with an intensely developed Market sense. Forex trading discipline will reduce your risk, but only if you have the discipline to stick with them. Traders who are undisciplined can turn the most sophisticated trading plans into confusion.

The best Forex traders take the time to observe market patterns and put together strategies which raise their chances of making money. Forex traders always enter into a trade having an exit strategy. They set their getting in price, and they set their getting out price. The best Forex traders never turn to be greedy. They are long term traders.

Forex trading strategies are only as good as the discipline of the trader who employs them. Only one can be successful in Forex trading when one uses risk capital and who continuously sticks to the plan. The other information on Forex discipline can be collected from forexebookstore.com.

Shift towards Forex trading

Nowadays, Forex trading is vastly becoming a career option for many people. It offers flexible hours, work from home option and high income potential. Today 90% of all new business initiatives fail because of many reasons such as under capitalization, no clear trading plan, poor management skills, and lack of discipline. To work off a successful business plan, new business owners are willing to pay additional dollars for a franchise because a franchise offers a true business plans.

One need not work hard to win in Forex trading. You only need to have the right knowledge for it. Mostly, people think that they can learn about trading through internet where the information is collected free of cost. But trading is a discipline and to learn it, one needs to follow a specific process. To have an advisor for advice and guidance can be dangerous at times. Thus, to achieve success in Forex trading one should be well prepared and well planned.

How to Make Consistent Profits Futures Trading

December 8th, 2009 admin No comments

The issue of direct access is an important one and it becomes more important the more short term your trading is. The market can change from a state of seeming paralysis to one of shocking volatility and activity in a flash. The length of time it takes between you deciding to enter an order and the order actually being in the market is obviously important.
When I first started trading I used a phone broker and was dismayed that my fills would often be so far from the price the market was trading when I first entered the order.
The first time I visited the trading floor, I discovered why. When I called in an order, first my discount broker would check my account equity, then he would call a phone booth on the floor, the phone broker on the floor would then write the order down and pass it on to a booth next to the appropriate pit, at that booth my order would be written down again and then signaled to a broker in the pit to be executed.
As you can imagine this would take quite a long time, even longer of course if the market was very active, as this would mean that the broker in the pit would be too occupied to take new orders. Compare this to my experience of trading as a pit trader. In the pit I was in the heart of the market and could observe every single order as it was executed (there was no delay in my price feed!).
To initiate a trade, whether it was to buy or sell at the market, or join the bid or the offer, all I had to do was open my mouth. You can start to see the huge advantage that trading on the floor gave me over off floor traders; and that doesn’t take into consideration the fact that my round trip costs fell by 96%.
Now the floor no longer exists, not in Europe at least, so why talk about the advantages of pit trading? Well the level playing field is now open to all, but very few take advantage of it. Trading with an electronic trading platform is exactly the same as trading in the pit, except I can sit down, it is much quieter and there are no crude jokes flying around.
I can trade with the click of a mouse; my order shoots to the exchange, enters in the market and appears back on my screen before I have time to blink. I think the advantages of direct access trading are clear and any futures trader still using a phone broker should move to direct access, they will also find their commissions are less (around $8 for private client traders).
The next question that arises is why trade futures? That is an important consideration given that there are a variety of alternatives vying for your trading capital (spread betting, CFDs and options), but in my opinion, futures are the only option (no pun intended) for successful short term trading.
A lot of traders are trading the stock indexes like the FTSE, the DAX, the S&Ps, NASDAQ and the DOW, but rather than use futures they are using spread betting firms. The reasons for using these firms is that they require very small amounts of capital to get started, a trader can trade very small amounts (like $1 a point on FTSE as opposed to $10 for FTSE futures) and these firms make opening an account so easy.
I understand the lure of being able to open an account with very little money and trading small amounts, but I have some serious considerations about using spread betting as a realistic vehicle for professional trading.
The two biggest selling points are no commissions and no capital gains tax. There are many different costs to trading, commissions are one and the spread is another (especially when you have to trade at the market as you do with spread betting, with futures you have the choice of joining the bid or the offer).
Commissions are important for an active trader and as an active trader you can get them very low, but lets assume they are $8 per round turn for futures and lets assume that the spread in FTSE futures is an average of 2 points. If the spread with a spread betting firm for FTSE is 6 points and assume that we are trading $10 a point we can compare the two trading vehicles.
Last week I made an average of 2.42 points per contract traded and I traded 48 times. That is, for each contract I bought and sold I made $24.20 before commissions, assuming my commission rate is $8, I made a profit of $16.20 per contract traded, which is $777.60 net profit if my average size per trade is one contract.
Had I had the same success trading with a spread-betting firm, with a 6-point spread, I would have lost $1718.40! Now I would rather pay tax on a profit that no tax on a loss.
There is one other very important reason for trading the futures market rather than a non-exchange traded market such as those offered by spread betting firms. The futures markets are exchange traded and this means that they are fully transparent, i.e. everything is visible and above the table, I can see every single trade that happens. Imagine the trading pit, as it used to be when traders stood physically in a ring trading with each other.
When a trade is entered, the order goes into the pit and is represented there, free to be taken by any other market participant. We can all see what is happening, we trade with the same information and with the same advantages/disadvantages.
Now assume you are a trader who can only trade with one broker in the pit, you can trade as much as you like, any size you like, but he sets the spread he is willing to offer you and you have to trade at market (i.e. buy at his offer and sell at his bid). This broker doesn’t want to loose money, naturally, so he always makes his spread wider than the real market spread, he also, naturally, puts his interests before yours, so he won’t always be willing to trade when the market is moving fast and he is uncertain.
Remember whenever you make money he loses, so he is very careful to maintain his advantage at all times. Who wouldn’t want to be in this brokers position (he isn’t really a broker, though he claims to be)? When you trade with a real futures broker, all the broker does is facilitate your trade; he gives you the ability to have you orders represented in the pit. A real brokers concern is that they execute your order as efficiently as possible, that is their job, they do not take positions and they do not take the opposite side to you.
They naturally want you to make money because by making money you become a client who will continue to pay them commissions. Trading with a spread betting firm is absurdly costly, spread betting firms are like amusement arcades, they can be fun, but to imagine you are going to make your living from slot machines is illusory.

Online Forex Trading – Is Online Forex Trading For You?

December 7th, 2009 admin No comments

In today’s web technology world trading currency have taken a big step online. And one of the best is the online forex trading. Forex trading online is the biggest market on net and they also employ their services round the clock. Traders who invest with this company will make as much as half of the profits. These online forex traders are very promising and also trustworthy traders.
Most of the companies work online today. Any person who wants to trade with forex has to open a new account with their website. This type of facility is best for those huge investors and most frequent traders.
There always some thing for everyone here.
This online trading currency company also provides good transaction online facilities.
The good thing about them is there is no broker involved. And if you have a personal system and net connected then you can do the trade as well as money transactions all from the convenience of your home.
The internet forex currency traders provide the information about various other currency rates this information online helps the traders to exchange the money when ever they want according to the market changes.
You have wide choice when it comes to trading online , as they are fifteen companies. There are so many options on currency trading and everything is attracting many number of people all over the globe and every one is eager to make profits.
Because there is no broker involved in this online trading, it makes a new comer wonder what to choose when they start on. And the result is they end up in a loss. Thus you will see that the existing online trading companies make sure that the new traders learn all the aspects of trade so that they can use their money in a profitable manner.
Before you start investing in the online forex trading make sure that you have learned about it well, about its losses and profits. You should consider looking for options which either are intermediate or provide long term results. Day trading generally has shown to end up in fewer profits so it will be better if you avoid that. How you craftily manage your money or investments is really important. Extensive knowledge about the whole market and the way it runs and also who are the players is very important for the new traders.
You can also choose to join the course available on net for learning the trading business. Courses offered train the traders about how one should manage the finance and will also provide you with course related to profit and risk making moves, their strategies, technical aspect and market trends and how others use networking for online trade. The course also let you know the present software in use for the online trading purpose.