Saturday, June 26, 2010
Many centuries ago, the value of goods were expressed in terms of other goods. This sort of economics was based on the barter system between individuals. The obvious limitations of such a system encouraged establishing more generally accepted mediums of exchange. It was important that a common base of value could be established. In some economies, items such as teeth, feathers even stones served this purpose, but soon various metals, in particular gold and silver, established themselves as an accepted means of payment as well as a reliable storage of value.
Coins were initially minted from the preferred metal and in stable political regimes, the introduction of a paper form of governmental I.O.U. during the Middle Ages also gained acceptance. This type of I.O.U. was introduced more successfully through force than through persuasion and is now the basis of today’s modern currencies.
Before the first World war, most Central banks supported their currencies with convertibility to gold. Paper money could always be exchanged for gold. However, for this type of gold exchange, there was not necessarily a Centrals bank need for full coverage of the government's currency reserves. This did not occur very often, however when a group mindset fostered this disastrous notion of converting back to gold in mass, panic resulted in so-called "Run on banks " The combination of a greater supply of paper money without the gold to cover led to devastating inflation and resulting political instability.
In order to protect local national interests, increased foreign exchange controls were introduced to prevent market forces from punishing monetary irresponsibility.
Near the end of WWII, The Bretton Woods agreement was reached on the initiative of the USA in July 1944. The conference held in Bretton Woods, New Hampshire rejected John Maynard Keynes suggestion for a new world reserve currency in favor of a system built on the US Dollar. International institutions such as the IMF, The World Bank and GATT were created in the same period as the emerging victors of WWII searched for a way to avoid the destabilizing monetary crises leading to the war. The Bretton Woods agreement resulted in a system of fixed exchange rates that reinstated The Gold Standard partly, fixing the USD at $35.00 per ounce of Gold and fixing the other main currencies to the dollar, initially intended to be on a permanent basis.
The Bretton Woods system came under increasing pressure as national economies moved in different directions during the 1960’s. A number of realignments held the system alive for a long time but eventually Bretton Woods collapsed in the early 1970’s following president Nixon's suspension of the gold convertibility in August 1971. The dollar was not any longer suited as the sole international currency at a time when it was under severe pressure from increasing US budget and trade deficits.
The last few decades have seen foreign exchange trading develop into the worlds largest global market. Restrictions on capital flows have been removed in most countries, leaving the market forces free to adjust foreign exchange rates according to their perceived values.
In Europe, the idea of fixed exchange rates had by no means died. The European Economic Community introduced a new system of fixed exchange rates in 1979, the European Monetary System. This attempt to fix exchange rates met with near extinction in 1992-93, when built-up economic pressures forced devaluations of a number of weak European currencies. The quest continued in Europe for currency stability with the 1991 signing of The Maastricht treaty. This was to not only fix exchange rates but also actually replace many of them with the Euro in 2002.
Today, Europe has embraced the Euro in 12 participating countries. The physical introduction of the Euro on January 1, 2002 saw the old countries currencies made obsolete on July 1, 2002.
In Asia, the lack of sustainability of fixed foreign exchange rates has gained new relevance with the events in South East Asia in the latter part of 1997, where currency after currency was devalued against the US dollar, leaving other fixed exchange rates in particular in South America also looking very vulnerable.
While commercial companies have had to face a much more volatile currency environment in recent years, investors and financial institutions have discovered a new playground. The size of the FOREX market now dwarfs any other investment market.
It is estimated that more than USD1,200 Billion are traded every day, that is the same amount as almost 40 times the daily USD volume on the American NASDAQ market
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Saturday, June 5, 2010
If you have just started trading in the FOREX market or your considering it, these five basic rules could save you a lot of money and keep that shirt on your back.
Of course Fap Turbo ,Forex megadroid and a host of other forex trading robots are waiting in the wings but we will look at them later.
The Five Basic Rules for FOREX Trading:
Yes it is worrying starting your journey into FOREX trading. The rules and methods of trading can seem like a lot to deal with. Of course you will learn many things along the way, like which currency pairs perform the best and trends in the market.
There is however key rules and methods you should be aware of in order to keep loses to an absolute minimum and maximize profits. You will avoid many pitfalls as well as recognize opportunities that will boost your profits in the FOREX market.
These are the five rules/methods we will cover :
1) Don't Over Leverage Your Investment
2 ) Quit When Your Ahead Know When That Is
3 ) Do your Research Before Making Trades
4) Stop Loss Orders Protect Yourself From Large Losses
5) Consider Getting Trading Robot That Will Save You Time and Money
I. Don't Over Leverage Your Investment
It's so easy to get caught up in the buzz of FOREX trading , However Leverage is a two edge sword. Leveraging is basically trading more money than you have in your portfolio. For example If you have $2000 in you account some brokers will allow you to buy $50,000 of a currency.
Its better to get the know the market over time than take unnecessary risks. Don't get carried away as you need a steady well thought out approach to make a long term consistent income with FOREX trading.
II.There Is A Time to Quit - Know When It Is
When your riding high on a profitable trade ,many people don't want to sell in the hope there profits will just keep on rising. Well values can fall as well as rise so don't get greedy and lose your gains.
However you don't want to cash in to quick and miss those few extra gains. Some trades you make won't be successful. But over time and careful studding the market trends, you will get a feel for when to start and stop trading. Even Experienced traders have a few losses along the way, but over all they have far more wins that losses and you will too.
III.Doing Your Research Before Making Trades
Research is a word many people don't like, because it involves extra work with no apparent benefits. Well in the FOREX Trading market, having an idea of history and current trends can be the difference between winning and losing. Don't treat the FOREX market like a casino because you will lose far more than you win. Do your research.
IV.Stop Loss Orders For Protection
Stop loss is part of a system that stops you from losing too much of your investment or profit , basically if the value of the currency falls to the value you set in the stop loss , Stop loss will sell and stop you from losing any more profit .
Stop loss should be st up before you start to trade ,and you need to decide the value that the stop loss activates. The successful traders use this safety method all of the time .
V.Consider Getting Trading Robot That Will Save You Time and Money
Well after reading the four rules above you must be wondering if there is an easier way .
Well yes there is, FOREX automated robot software, not only trades on average better than humans it can also trade night and day with no interaction from you. Real live account studies have shown one particular Robot Doubling Profits every month.
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Tuesday, June 1, 2010
The benefits of online forex trading:
1. Before online forex trading, this market was like a private club for investment banks, foreign governments, and extremely wealthy individuals. After all, since currency trades are often open and closed on the same day (sometimes within minutes or even seconds!), it didn't make sense for stockbrokers to trade currencies for their clients. On top of that, there are no commissions in forex, which was another thing that brokers didn't like about the this market. But thanks to the Internet, online forex trading allows individuals to participate in trading from the comfort of their own homes -- no middle man is necessary!
2. The forex is the largest and fastest growing financial market in the world. It's open twenty-four hours a day, it allows traders to have a huge amount of leverage (as much as 250:1), it charges zero commissions, and it can never experience a bear market. And thanks to the advent of online forex trading, virtually every citizen of the free world can profit in the foreign exchange market!
3. Forex is the ultimate market for Internet-based trading. After all, unlike most stock exchanges, the forex doesn't have a physical location -- it's all electronic. So when you're in your pajamas doing online trading, big bankers in New York skyscrapers have no concrete advantages over you.
4. Another aspect of online forex trading that has made it so popular is the ability of personal computers to perform complex charting operations in real time. In the days before the 'Net and high-powered computers in every home, it was nearly impossible to perform these tasks.
5. But what are the benefits of online forex trading to the individual? For one, it allows you to diversify your overall investment strategy. You may choose to keep long-term investments in the stock or bond markets, but still engage in online forex trading with a portion of your holdings. Remember, unlike other financial markets, the forex never goes up or down, so currency trading can be especially attractive during economic downturns in the U.S.
6. Another benefit of online forex trading is there are no commissions! You're never charged $9.95 (or more!) for merely executing a trade. You buy a currency from a "market maker," paying in the form of another currency. The amount the market maker is willing to pay you (the "bid") is slightly less than he's willing to sell you that currency for (the "ask") and this is known as "the spread".
7. One final benefit of forex trading is that it provides small traders with more leverage than any other market. Typical leverage is at least 100:1, meaning you can control $100 in currency for every $1 in your account. Stock margin is just 2:1, so online forex trading offers you up to fifty times (or more!) the buying power of stock trading.
8. Opening an online forex trading account is easy, and there are many providers offering the service. Be sure to evaluate several to make sure they deal in the currencies you're interested in trading. Also, many of these services offer free "practice" accounts that allow you to test your skills with "funny money" before you jump in with real cash. This is a world of opportunity, and the only limits on individual wealth are self-imposed.
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