With currency trading becoming ever more popular, the number
of brokers is growing at a rapid rate. What should one look at
when deciding which broker to open an account with? These are the
important points to consider.
Spread
Because currencies, unlike futures and stocks, are not traded
through a central exchange, the spread can be different depending
on the broker you use, so it's well worth checking a few out
before you open an account. Most forex brokers publish live or
delayed prices on their websites so you can compare spreads, but
check if the spread is fixed or variable. A fixed spread means
exactly that - it will always be the same no matter what time of
day or night it is. Some brokers use a variable spread, which
might appear to be nice and small when the market is quiet, but
when things get busy they can widen the spread which means the
market must move more in your favor before you start to make a
profit. Fixed spreads are generally slightly wider than the
variable spreads are when at their narrowest, but over the long
term fixed can be safer.
Execution
Some brokers will show live prices on their trading platform,
but will they honor them when it comes to pushing the Buy or Sell
button? The best way to find out is to open a demo account and
give them a test drive. This will also give you the opportunity
to see what the speed of execution is like - when you want to
buy, you want to buy now, not sit around waiting for ten minutes
whilst your order is confirmed!
Trading Platform
Good trading software will show live prices that you can
actually trade at, not just indicative quotes. It will offer
Limit and Stop orders, and ideally will let you attach these to
your entry order. One-Cancels-Other orders are another useful
feature - they mean you can set up your trade and then leave the
software to get on with it. And the most important feature of all
- can you actually understand the platform? Having all the bells
and whistles is of no use if you can't use them, so again, get a
demo account and give it a go.
Support
Forex is a 24 hour market, so your broker should offer 24 hour
support. You might not be trading at 3am, but that could be what
time it is in your brokers head office on the other side of the
planet, so make sure there will be somebody there to pick up the
phone if things go wrong. You should also check if you can close
positions over the phone - essential in case your PC or internet
connection crash at a critical moment.
Backing
Finally, before opening an account do a little homework and
find out about the company. Forex brokers are regulated, but that
doesn't mean they all have equal backing. If the market
collapses, you want to know that they've got the reserves to cope
with it and will still be around when you decide to withdraw your
cash. If a broker is elusive when it comes to questions about
their parentage and financial backing, then steer clear.
In Conclusion
Choosing a forex broker isn't difficult, but don't rush the
decision. Check out a few, and always get a demo account first to
make sure you're happy with the way everything works before
sending off your opening balance.
India Eases Currency Trading Limits for Some Banks Wall Street Journal By SUDEEP JAIN MUMBAI -- India's central bank has asked banks to approach it individually for relaxing some foreign currency trading limits and has already eased restrictions for some banks, a top official said Monday. "Some limits, based on their ...
FOCUS: Technology Buoys Retail Currency Trading, Reshapes Old Models Wall Street Journal By Eva Szalay Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES LONDON (Dow Jones)--Retail foreign-exchange trading is emerging as one of the biggest growth areas in the currencies space, and some of the trading firms that facilitate these flows are building up a whole new ...
Argentina Sends Tax Agents to Control Currency Trading Wall Street Journal Afip said that one well-known currency trading business, Banco Piano, refused to let inspectors do their job. As a result, Afip officials interviewed Banco Piano customers outside three of the company's branches. The government will fine Banco Piano ...
Morgan Stanley Currency-Trading Head Stephen Mettler Leaves Bank BusinessWeek By Michael J. Moore Jan. 26 (Bloomberg) -- Stephen Mettler, who oversaw Morgan Stanley's interest rates and foreign-exchange trading businesses, has left the bank. Mettler, who joined the firm in 1997, retired, according to an internal memo obtained by ...
Market Vibrations: Live News And Commentary From The Europe Desk (0630 GMT) TheStreet.com DailyFX is the forex news and research arm of FXCM, Inc (NYSE: FXCM), which provides currency trading and brokerage services and is an advertiser on TheStreet websites. Any opinions, news, research, analyses, prices, or other information is provided as ...
RELATED ARTICLESWhy Forex Traders Plan To
Fail Before They Even Place Their First Trade & How You
Can Know It & ...
Have you heard the wise saying that a trader who fails to
plan, plans to fail? I have, and I was once that trader!
However, did you know that even though traders who have
constructed a plan, which incorporates their trading
strategy (their "edge"), they have a plan that is likely to
fail? If we look at all traders who participate in the
market: we have one group that fails to plan and therefore
plans to fail; another group whose plan is failed; and a
third group who properly plans and therefore does not
fail. Is it any wonder that the success rate for forex
traders is so slim? Well it doesn't have to be.
Discovering Turnaround
Candidates
There are many types of investment methodology out there.
All of them has their own merits.
FOREX Trading
Philosophy
Keen on starting FOREX trading? Why would you not be? Many
beginning FOREX traders are captivated by the allure of
easy money. FOREX websites offer 'risk-free' trading, 'high
returns' and 'low investment' - these claims have a grain
of truth in them, but the reality of FOREX is a bit more
complex.
Financial Crises, Global
Capital Flows and the International Financial
Architecture
The recent upheavals in the world financial markets were
quelled by the immediate intervention of both international
financial institutions such as the IMF and of domestic ones
in the developed countries, such as the Federal Reserve in
the USA. The danger seems to have passed, though recent
tremors in South Korea, Brazil and Taiwan do not augur
well.
Trading Profitably on
the Foreign Exchange Market
You may be asking yourself "how does one begin to trade
profitably as a currency trader"? First, it is important to
closely monitor foreign equity markets to attempt to
predict or model how their respective currencies will
perform against other currencies, ideally, currencies that
are not very closely related, nor proportional, to the
former currency.
Day Trading Success- The
Key Is Survival
Most new traders tend to focus just about all their time
and energy on finding nearly perfect "setups", but trade
setups, even very good ones, are *not* the key to
successful trading. It's the *way* you trade your setups
that keeps your losses smaller than your gains.
Online Forex
Trading
Foreign exchange currency trading is also known as Forex
trading, or FX, and has no single physical marketplace like
the New York Stock Exchange does on Wall Street in New York
or the Tokyo Stock Exchange does in Japan. The New York
Stock Exchange and the Tokyo Stock Exchange online traders
are limited to making purchases during the actual trading
hours governed by New York Stock Exchange hours or the
Japanese Stock Exchange's Tokyo hours.
Forex Currency
Trading
It is possible to buy and sell money from different
countries on the foreign exchange market called Forex.
Forex currency traders can profit by taking advantage of
the dips and swells in the foreign currency market.
The Seven Most Traded
Currencies in FOREX.
Currencies are traded in dollar amounts called "lots". One
lot is equal to $1,000, which controls $100,000 in
currency.
Forex
Profits
The Forex Market-What, When and Why? Forex, FX and the Forex
market are some common abbreviations for the Foreign
Exchange market. Actually it is the largest financial
market in the world, where money is sold and bought freely.
Experience
Throughout our course on futures trading, we have tried to
point out to you that there is a great difference between
having an investor attitude and being a trader. There are
also many similarities.
How Do Other Countries
Devalue Their Currencies?
Countries devalue their currencies only when they have no
other way to correct past economic mistakes - whether their
own or mistakes committed by their predecessors. The ills of
a devaluation are still at least equal to its advantages.
Choosing A Forex
Broker
With currency trading becoming ever more popular, the
number of brokers is growing at a rapid rate. What should
one look at when deciding which broker to open an account
with? These are the important points to consider.
Getting a Forex Trading
Education
Many Americans are interested in getting involved in forex
trading. Before doing this, you should get a forex trading
education.
Facts of Day
Trading
Are you thinking of entering the fast-paced world of day
trading? Arm yourselves with the information from this fact
sheet on day trading. What is day trading? Day trading is an
investment tactic that does online daily stock trading with
a relatively short investment.
Advantages of Trading
FOREX Over Stocks and Commodities
There are many advantages to Trading FOREX as your main
income generator. Let's start by something that may be
worrying you already.
The Secret of Reduced
Margin Spreads
One of the best kept secrets in trading is that of reduced
margin spreads. You cannot name a trading method that
provides more safety or a greater return on margin than
does a reduced margin spread, while also being one of the
least time- consuming ways to trade.
Reality of Online Forex
Trading
Foreign exchange trading is the trading of currencies. Most
currencies can be traded.
How to Trade
Currency
We all know when you go on a trip to another country; you
need to take some travelers checks and some cash in the
currency of that country. This can be advantageous because
one country's currency is usually worth more or less than
the other.
Forex Made Easy for
Everyone
Forex made easy is as simple as you would want it to be.
The foreign exchange market is a worldwide market and
according to some estimates is almost as big as thirty
times the turnover of the US Equity markets.
MORE RESOURCES updated Tue. February / 07 / 2012
