The amount of currency converted everyday can make price movements of some currencies extremely volatile. It is the high volatility that makes forex so attractive to traders, enticing high profits, while also increasing the risk. Unlike shares or commodities, forex trading does not take place on exchanges but directly between two parties in an over the counter OTC market.

The forex market is run by a global network of banks, spread across four major forex trading centres in different time zones: London, New York, Sydney and Tokyo. Because there is no central location, it can be traded 24 HOURS a day. Let me show you how to open your very own first Forex Trading Account.

As tempting as that may be, we recommend that you also open a free practise account so that you get accustomed to the trading platform and gain that feel and overall access to the Metatrader 4 MT4 or Metatrader 5 MT5 dashboard and all its features.

That is to say, how to open and close a trade, how to set your take profit and stop losses, which lot size to use, which currency to trade, what timeframe to use and so on. Forex is real and not a scam. With the right tutorials, strategy and mentorship one can make unlimited passive income.

AVFX Trading HUB offers free trading materials for beginners, intermediate and advanced traders. Take a look at our forex strategies page. Written By: Allen Matshalaga. Allen is a professional forex trader, blogger and an online enthusiast who spends most of his time testing and reviewing legit ways of making money online and is determined to help others succeed. Your email address will not be published. Examples of cross pairs are GBPJPY, GBPAUD, and AUDNZD.

Finally, there is also a group of currencies that is not heavily traded on the Forex market, which means that their liquidity is low and volatility is high. Those currencies include the Turkish lira, Mexican peso, or Czech krone, for example.

The high volatility of these currencies makes them unsuitable for beginners, at least until they gain enough trading experience. All mentioned currencies have their own characteristics and personalities. The US dollar, euro, and Japanese yen are major reserve currencies held by central banks around the world, but the Japanese yen and US dollar to some extent are also safe-haven currencies that rise in value in times of political and economic turmoil in the world.

On the other hand, currencies like the Canadian dollar, Australian dollar, New Zealand dollar, and Norwegian krone are also called commodity-linked currencies, as they heavily depend on the price of commodities such as oil and copper. A trading platform is simply a program that you install on your computer which is then used to connect to your brokerage account and start trading. Nowadays, there are also web-based and mobile-based trading platforms which can be opened directly in your browser or installed on your smartphone.

Check with your broker if those types of platforms are offered. One of the most popular trading platforms among retail Forex traders is the MetaTrader platform. It offers advanced charting tools, a range of market orders and a large online community were you can ask for help whenever you need it.

There are many Forex exchange tutorials that cover how to use MetaTrader to trade on the Forex market, and your broker of choice might also have some basic guidelines on its website.

A new exciting website with services that better suit your location has recently launched! Home page Getting started Articles about Forex Trading strategies Complete Forex trading tutorial for beginners. Forex tutorial: What is Forex trading?

History of the Forex market After World War II, countries needed stable currencies to restore their infrastructure and spur economic growth. Pips — Pips are the smallest increment that currency pairs can change in value. A pip refers to the fourth decimal place of an exchange rate, but bear in mind that some pairs that include the Japanese yen have their pips on the second decimal place. For example, if the EURUSD pair rises from 1. On the other hand, if USDJPY rises from Colors are sometimes used to indicate price movement, with green or white used for periods of rising prices and red or black for a period during which prices declined.

Candlestick charts were first used by Japanese rice traders in the 18th century. They are visually more appealing and easier to read than the chart types described above. The upper portion of a candle is used for the opening price and highest price point used by a currency, and the lower portion of a candle is used to indicate the closing price and lowest price point. A down candle represents a period of declining prices and is shaded red or black, while an up candle is a period of increasing prices and is shaded green or white.

The formations and shapes in candlestick charts are used to identify market direction and movement. Some of the more common formations for candlestick charts are hanging man and shooting star.

Forex markets are the largest in terms of daily trading volume in the world and therefore offer the most liquidity. This makes it easy to enter and exit a position in any of the major currencies within a fraction of a second for a small spread in most market conditions.

The forex market is traded 24 hours a day, five and a half days a week—starting each day in Australia and ending in New York. The broad time horizon and coverage offer traders several opportunities to make profits or cover losses. The major forex market centers are Frankfurt, Hong Kong, London, New York, Paris, Singapore, Sydney, Tokyo, and Zurich. The extensive use of leverage in forex trading means that you can start with little capital and multiply your profits.

Forex trading generally follows the same rules as regular trading and requires much less initial capital; therefore, it is easier to start trading forex compared to stocks. The forex market is more decentralized than traditional stock or bond markets. There is no centralized exchange that dominates currency trade operations, and the potential for manipulation—through insider information about a company or stock—is lower.

Even though they are the most liquid markets in the world, forex trades are much more volatile than regular markets. Banks, brokers, and dealers in the forex markets allow a high amount of leverage, which means that traders can control large positions with relatively little money of their own.

Leverage in the range of is not uncommon in forex. A trader must understand the use of leverage and the risks that leverage introduces in an account. Trading currencies productively requires an understanding of economic fundamentals and indicators. A currency trader needs to have a big-picture understanding of the economies of the various countries and their interconnectedness to grasp the fundamentals that drive currency values.

The decentralized nature of forex markets means that it is less accountable to regulation than other financial markets. The extent and nature of regulation in forex markets depend on the jurisdiction of trading. Forex markets lack instruments that provide regular income, such as regular dividend payments, which might make them attractive to investors who are not interested in exponential returns. Companies and traders use forex for two main reasons: speculation and hedging.

The former is used by traders to make money off the rise and fall of currency prices, while the latter is used to lock in prices for manufacturing and sales in overseas markets.

Forex markets are among the most liquid markets in the world. Hence, they tend to be less volatile than other markets, such as real estate. The volatility of a particular currency is a function of multiple factors, such as the politics and economics of its country. Therefore, events like economic instability in the form of a payment default or imbalance in trading relationships with another currency can result in significant volatility.

Forex trade regulation depends on the jurisdiction. Countries like the United States have sophisticated infrastructure and markets to conduct forex trades. Hence, forex trades are tightly regulated there by the National Futures Association NFA and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission CFTC.

However, due to the heavy use of leverage in forex trades, developing countries like India and China have restrictions on the firms and capital to be used in forex trading. Europe is the largest market for forex trades. The Financial Conduct Authority FCA is responsible for monitoring and regulating forex trades in the United Kingdom. Currencies with high liquidity have a ready market and therefore exhibit smooth and predictable price action in response to external events.

The U. dollar is the most traded currency in the world. It features in six of the seven currency pairs with the most liquidit y in the markets. Currencies with low liquidity, however, cannot be traded in large lot sizes without significant market movement being associated with the price. Such currencies generally belong to developing countries. When they are paired with the currency of a developed country, an exotic pair is formed. For example, a pairing of the U.

Next, you need to develop a trading strategy based on your finances and risk tolerance. Finally, you should open a brokerage account. Today, it is easier than ever to open and fund a forex account online and begin trading currencies. For traders —especially those with limited funds—day trading or swing trading in small amounts is easier in the forex market than in other markets. For those with longer-term horizons and larger funds, long-term fundamentals-based trading or a carry trade can be profitable.

A focus on understanding the macroeconomic fundamentals that drive currency values, as well as experience with technical analysis, may help new forex traders to become more profitable. Bank for International Settlements. Federal Reserve History. Guide to Forex Trading. Company News Markets News Cryptocurrency News Personal Finance News Economic News Government News. Your Money. Personal Finance. Your Practice. Popular Courses.

Table of Contents Expand. Table of Contents. What Is the Forex Market? A Brief History of Forex. An Overview of Forex Markets. Uses of the Forex Markets.

How to Start Trading Forex. Forex Terminology. Basic Forex Trading Strategies. Charts Used in Forex Trading. Pros and Cons of Trading Forex. The Bottom Line. Key Takeaways The foreign exchange also known as forex or FX market is a global marketplace for exchanging national currencies.

Because of the worldwide reach of trade, commerce, and finance, forex markets tend to be the largest and most liquid asset markets in the world. Currencies trade against each other as exchange rate pairs. Forex markets exist as spot cash markets as well as derivatives markets, offering forwards, futures, options, and currency swaps. Market participants use forex to hedge against international currency and interest rate risk, to speculate on geopolitical events, and to diversify portfolios, among other reasons.

Pros and Cons of Trading Forex Pros Forex markets are the largest in terms of daily trading volume in the world and therefore offer the most liquidity. Automation of forex markets lends itself well to rapid execution of trading strategies. Cons Even though they are the most liquid markets in the world, forex trades are much more volatile than regular markets.

Extreme amounts of leverage have led to many dealers becoming insolvent unexpectedly. Why Do People Trade Currencies? Are Forex Markets Volatile? Are Forex Markets Regulated? Which Currencies Can I Trade in? How Do I Get Started With Forex Trading?

There are many financial markets in the world, such as the stock, bond, and commodities markets, but few of them can compare to the Forex market in terms of daily turnover, trading hours, and opportunities. The Forex market is the largest financial market in the world and is open around the clock, from Monday to Friday.

Being an over-the-counter market, there are no centralised exchanges like in the case of the stock market. Instead, currencies are traded during various Forex trading sessions that span from Sydney in Australia, to New York in the United States. Forex traders buy a currency if they anticipate that its price may rise, and short-sell a currency if they believe its price could fall, making a profit from the difference in the entry and exit price. In order to start trading on Forex, all you need is a computer with internet access, a trading platform, and a brokerage account.

After World War II, countries needed stable currencies to restore their infrastructure and spur economic growth. As a result, the Bretton Woods agreement established a fixed exchange rate regime among major currencies and the US dollar, which in turn was pegged to the price of gold.

The US government had to devalue the US dollar a few times, before the Bretton Woods agreement came finally to an end in As a result, major currencies began floating again and the Forex market with freely floating currencies was born.

However, only large institutional players could trade on the Forex market at that time, but advancements in technology have made Forex available to smaller retail traders as well.

The retail Forex market, as we know it today, has started growing in the last few decades with the advancement of internet and technology. Those include the US dollar USD , euro EUR , British pound GBP , Swiss franc CHF , Japanese yen JPY , Australian dollar AUD , New Zealand dollar NZD and the Canadian dollar CAD. Besides these eight major currencies, there are two more currencies that round up the G10 currencies — the Norwegian krone NOK and the Swedish krone SEK.

All currencies are quoted in pairs, which consist of the base and the counter-currency. The exchange rate always shows the price of the base currency, expressed in terms of the counter-currency. For example, if the EURUSD euro vs.

US dollar pair trades at 1. All currency pairs that involve the US dollar as either the base or counter-currency are called major currency pairs.

They include the EURUSD, GBPUSD, and USDJPY, to name a few. Examples of cross pairs are GBPJPY, GBPAUD, and AUDNZD. Finally, there is also a group of currencies that is not heavily traded on the Forex market, which means that their liquidity is low and volatility is high.

Those currencies include the Turkish lira, Mexican peso, or Czech krone, for example. The high volatility of these currencies makes them unsuitable for beginners, at least until they gain enough trading experience. All mentioned currencies have their own characteristics and personalities.

The US dollar, euro, and Japanese yen are major reserve currencies held by central banks around the world, but the Japanese yen and US dollar to some extent are also safe-haven currencies that rise in value in times of political and economic turmoil in the world. On the other hand, currencies like the Canadian dollar, Australian dollar, New Zealand dollar, and Norwegian krone are also called commodity-linked currencies, as they heavily depend on the price of commodities such as oil and copper.

A trading platform is simply a program that you install on your computer which is then used to connect to your brokerage account and start trading. Nowadays, there are also web-based and mobile-based trading platforms which can be opened directly in your browser or installed on your smartphone. Check with your broker if those types of platforms are offered. One of the most popular trading platforms among retail Forex traders is the MetaTrader platform.

It offers advanced charting tools, a range of market orders and a large online community were you can ask for help whenever you need it. There are many Forex exchange tutorials that cover how to use MetaTrader to trade on the Forex market, and your broker of choice might also have some basic guidelines on its website.

A new exciting website with services that better suit your location has recently launched! Home page Getting started Articles about Forex Trading strategies Complete Forex trading tutorial for beginners. Forex tutorial: What is Forex trading? History of the Forex market After World War II, countries needed stable currencies to restore their infrastructure and spur economic growth.

Pips — Pips are the smallest increment that currency pairs can change in value. A pip refers to the fourth decimal place of an exchange rate, but bear in mind that some pairs that include the Japanese yen have their pips on the second decimal place. For example, if the EURUSD pair rises from 1. On the other hand, if USDJPY rises from Trading on leverage refers to borrowing money from your broker in order to open a larger position size than your initial trading account size would allow.

For example, leverage of allows you to open a position times larger than your account size. But be cautious when trading on leverage, as it magnifies both your profits and losses! Margin — To be able to trade on leverage, you need to put a small part of your trading account aside as collateral for the leveraged trade.

The margin will be returned to your trading account once you close your leveraged trade or it hits its exit price.

The following table shows the required margin to open a trade, based on the used leverage ratio. Spread — The spread is the difference between the bid and ask price of a currency pair.

This is usually the only transaction cost you need to pay to your broker in order to open a Forex trade. Spreads can be as low as 1 pip or lower on major pairs like EURUSD, but can widen in the event of lessliquid cross-pairs and exotic currencies. Market, stop loss and take profit orders — A market execution order is used to open a Forex trade at the current rates offered by your broker. Whenever you open a new trade, you should use stop loss orders to prevent large losses if the price goes against you.

A stop loss order automatically closes your position once the prespecified price is reached. Similarly, take profit orders are used to lock in your profits after a trade plays out well and hits a certain price. More useful articles How much money do you need to start trading Forex?

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FX or forex market is a global market place for exchanging national currencies against one another. Related Articles. OPEN DEMO ACCOUNT. This is done for various reasons, normally commerce, trading and tourism. For context, a standard account lot is equal to , currency units. However, due to the heavy use of leverage in forex trades, developing countries like India and China have restrictions on the firms and capital to be used in forex trading. Factors like interest rates , trade flows, tourism, economic strength, and geopolitical risk affect the supply and demand for currencies, creating daily volatility in the forex markets.

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