How to Choose a Forex Trading Website

So you've decided, rightfully so, that online Forex trading is a profit venue that you want to explore. This is a smart choice because of the earnings options and other advantages the Forex trading market offers.

If you are wondering how to get started in the online Forex business just follow the following page guidelines and you'll be on your way to become a better forex trader.Choosing the initial forex broker is important even before you try them out and trade. To select the right Forex trading broker for you, you need to examine the following factors and then decide which forex broker suits you best.

Consumer Credit Forex Indicator

Consumer credit consists of three categories: auto, revolving and other. All in all this indicator is less important than the CPI, but it can also help you gain an understanding of the online Forex trading market

The consumer credit index is published by the federal reserve every fifth business day of the month. This Forex trading measure is used to evaluate consumer spending. This measure is liable to make considerable changes and fluctuations in its value.

Introduction to Technical Analysis

Any forex trader must apply a certain method in order to predict the future price of a certain currency, that's a given fact. The entire concept of speculative forex trading is based upon future fluctuations in currency prices. You make profit by buying a certain currency in one price and selling by another.

Therefore, the most important thing for any trader, novice or expert, is to have some sort of prediction to future price changes. Thus came to life several different methods of market analysis, each tries to incorporate different methods and data in order to give some sort of prediction to the future price of various currencies.

Forex Trading Sideway Trends

There isn't much to say about sideway trends, except that they are trend stages in between uptrends and downtrends. Sideway trends usually do not tell much about the currency situation, even though they can hint on a nearing reversal in the trend direction. These are Forex trading trends that are less frequent but still give important information for the online trader.

Now that you've learned all there is to know about Forex trading trends, go on and see how you can use it in the actual Forex trading market.

Steps for choosing forex trade

Choose the right program for you - You first need to examine each of the websites, according to the services they offer. Some websites are more into online Forex trading advice, for example. If this is not something you are looking for, you need to find a different online Forex trading agent.
Check the commissions before choosing a Forex trading website - Some websites include a registration fee for making the Forex trade while others, including major Forex websites, are free. A website that has fees for Forex trading doesn't mean it is a more serious site.
Examine the Forex trading Website - When you enter a website for Forex trading, examine it and notice the quality of the website's layout. The main factor in online Forex trading websites is the process of entering an investment so pay attention especially for this aspect.

Selecting a Forex trading account type

Forex trading sites offer different account types. Make sure you find the right trading site, and then the job of selecting the account type will be easy.
One of the differences between Forex Trading account types is the size of the account. There are Forex trading accounts as well as mini accounts that vary in size, and can range between $25 to $10,000. The account size will determine which lot investments are available to you. Create the account according to the funds you want to invest with, and make sure you do not risk to much of them right from the start.
You should also make sure you choose a Forex trading spot account, rather that a futures account. This is the most popular account type, as most online traders want their trades to be done instantaneously.

Forex Account activation and confirmation

Because we are dealing with real money accounts, you are required to verify your details and your email, through various needed steps. Before you sign the terms and conditions of the Forex trading account, make sure you understand what the site is offering. You should make sure you understand about the various conditions that include:
- The Forex site's hours of operation and the availability of live support.
- The bid/ask spread that the site offers for major currencies, in relation to what other sites offer.
- Make sure that proper leverage is available through the margin per trade.
- Find out about The minimum account size and lot size.
- Check that there are no small print or hidden commissions that the site's operators prefer you don’t know about.
- If you can, try out the Forex trading platform, as well as the charting and technical analysis options beforehand.
- Check the general contract and make sure you save it along with the requoting policy on your computer.

Understanding and Trading Forex Currency Pairs

Any Forex trading transaction is made of the buying of one currency and the simultaneous selling of another currency. The two Forex trading currencies being traded are called the currency pair. A currency quote is made of these two pairs of Forex trading currencies, situated together and divided by a line (for example, EUR/USD).
There are various Forex currency pairs to choose from. These are divided into major and minor currencies. Major currencies are the seven most frequently traded currencies, which include the USD, EUR, JPY, GBP, CHF, CAD and AUD. All other currencies are called minor currencies, and include the NZD (the New Zealand dollar) and the ZAR (the South African rand).

Fully automated click & deal trading, with instantaneous fills

At FOREX.com, we've always automated processing for all click & deal forex trades. When you click BUY or SELL, our systems perform a real time margin check and, if accepted, immediately respond with a trade confirmation. Why is this important to you? First, you benefit from an unbiased trading environment that is not subject to human intervention. Second, automated trade processing improves our efficiency, which lowers our overhead and allows us to pass along the saving to you in the form of tighter spreads.

Forex vs Current Future

If you have read our article comparing forex to equities you probably already know why Forex is a superior market in measuring up to the equities market. In this article we will evaluate the Forex market in conjunction with the currency futures market. Of course there are various points of distinction between each of these markets – historical, philosophical and technical to name a few. In this article we will review some significant differences between the two markets that reflect the way you trade and make money in each of them.
One of the biggest advantages the Forex market has to offer is its unparalleled volume. In fact, the amount of money traded every day on the Forex market is over 50 times bigger than the volume on the futures market. If you have read our previous Forex trading articles you probably already know that the Forex market is the biggest financial market in the world. Fact is that this size does not only indicate the popularity of the market but most of all it shows the amount of trading opportunities you can find on this market. The Forex market offers a place for any trader, from the smallest pastime traders to the professional, high-rollers.

Forex vs Equity

Any novice Forex trader questions himself sooner or later – "Why did I choose the Forex market, is it definitely the best financial market for me?" Usually this question arises from curiosity and nothing else, but curiosity must be satisfied.
In the next two articles our team will point the evident advantages the Forex market has over other well-known financial markets, starting with the famous US equities market. Any person with a feel for economics and trading experiences some sensation to the sound of Wall Street, but does it truly measure up to the colossal forex market?
First, the key benefit the forex market offers is its 24-hour accessibility. When you are trading forex it doesn’t matter at all whether it is 5am or 5pm. Time differences and market dynamics make sure there will always be an eager trader somewhere around the globe looking for a deal. This feature gives you the privilege to respond to any financial developments, as soon as they transpire. Furthermore, the prices of forex can not be affected from after-hours trade.

Market Order

Market orders are the most basic Forex trading orders that are bought and sold for the current market price. With market orders, the transaction is done regardless of the price. The Forex trading software gives you real time prices, so you can decide exactly when to execute a market order with ease. Market orders are perfect for situations where you follow a certain currency up close. The minute you want to enter a position you can buy and sell the currency at a click of a button using Forex trading market order.
The main thing to remember about market orders is that they are executed for the current market price, and that this is beneficial if you want to instantly enter a position.
The process of placing Forex trading orders is like so:
1. First you specify the currency pair and the size of the deal. Let's say the EUR/USD pair quoted 1.2603/06, for 2 lots of $100 each.
2. Next you choose to either sell each EUR for 1.2603 USD (bid price), or choose to buy each EUR for 1.2607 USD (ask price).
3. Finally, the transaction is confirmed by your dealer. This only takes a few seconds for Forex trading orders.

Limit Order

Forex Trading Limit entry orders are executed only if the currency price touches but not breaks the price you set. Limit orders are done when traders want to set the limit price. These orders are executed only if the currency reaches the limit price you set. Limit orders are used when you want to buy and sell a currency only if it reaches a certain price or better. Let's say the currency pair EUR/USD is worth 1.245, and you buy a limit order of 1.249. This means that the transaction will be executed only if the currency price rises to 1.249.

Stop Order

A stop order is placed to accumulate profits or to prevent losses. To place a stop order, simply specify the price where you'd like to place the stop on. Stop orders are sometimes names stop loss orders, and can occur for both bid and ask transactions.
A stop loss order is a type of Forex Trading limit order that serves as a protection against a large drop in currency price. If the currency price falls beneath the price you set, it is automatically sold, thus ensuring you do not lose too much money.

The Forex Trading Bid & Ask Prices and Spread

This page covers everything you need to know about the bid and ask prices in the online Forex trading market, From the definition of Forex bid & ask prices, to the use of the bid & ask spread.
A Forex Trading Bid price is the price at which the market is prepared to buy a specific currency pair in the Forex trading market. This is the price that the trader of Forex buys his base currency in. In the quote, the Forex bid price appears to the left of the currency quote. For example, If the EUR/USD pair is 1.2342/47, then the bid price is 1.2342. Meaning you can sell the EUR for 1.2342 USD.
A Forex asking price is the price at which the market is ready to sell a certain Forex Trading currency pair in the online Forex market. This is the price that the trader buys in. It appears to the right of the Forex quote. For example, in the same EUR/USD pair of 1.2342/47, the ask price us 1.2347. This means you can buy one EUR for 1.2347 USD.

Forex trading History Explained

The modern online Forex history begins in 1973. Even though currency trading has been around since the times of ancient Egypt, which at that time the market was extremely primitive, and there were no advance trading tools as today's fundamental analysis, for example.

The first currency coins were used at the times of the pharos, and the first paper notes were then introduced by the Babylonians. Later on, the roman coin called aureus was used, which was followed by the denarius. Both coins had worldwide use, making them the first global foreign currency coins.
The Bretton Woods System (1944-1973), came after the great instability of World War II. England and other European countries were left in ruins, after the war ended, while the US's economy was left relatively stable and strong.
The USD became the prominent currency after WWII, mainly because of the war. The Dollar also became the new global reserve currency, and remained so throughout the rest of the Forex history. This was agreed upon in the Bretton Woods conference, when all of the other foreign currencies were pegged to the USD, and a new international financial network was formed.

Forex Economic Indicators

The execution of fundamental analysis in the Forex market is done through the use of economic indicators. These indicators point to the state of some economical factors in the country whose currency you wish to trade with.

Economic indicators are published by various sections of the government and private companies. These statistics are analyzed by market investors to predict the direction of the Forex trading market. Forex economic indicators are published at fixed time intervals, and are followed by any serious online Forex trader.
Since so many people are tuned to use them, Forex economic indicators have a large impact on prices of currencies of the Forex trading market. Most traders do not use fundamental analysis because economic indicators seem difficult. This however is wrong because following simple guides can help you stay updated with the important Forex economic indicators easily.

Starting to use Forex economic indicators

To get started, you should first keep a log of all the important Forex economic indicators' release dates. Keep a log or make a subscription to one of the economic journals, so you'll know the most important factors of that time. If you are trading in JPY, the Forex economic indicators need to be relevant to the currency type, of course.

Each economic indicator tells you about a different aspect of the economy, and this should be translated in turn into the predicted movement of the currency price. Make sure you understand which aspect the indicator is about. For example, know that the GDP measures the growth of the economy while the PPI measures inflation. Don't worry, with some experience this will come naturally.