Forex Trading - Advantages Over Traditional Investment Methods

Most people are looking for the perfect way to invest their money. No one will argue against the fact that your money is only going to grow by any reasonable amount if you have invested in some type of market. The first piece of advice usually given is that they should take advantage of whatever is offered by their employer's 401k plan, if that is an option for them. This is good, sound and advice and should be followed if at all possible.

However, many people either don't have the option of investing in a 401k, or they have maxed out their 401k contributions and are looking for a good place to invest their additional funds for maximum growth. For obvious reasons (ie - terrible perfomance), traditional savings accounts and CDs are out of the question. These people are usually advised that investing in mutual funds is the only practical, "safe" alternative to a 401k.

Many people hold the belief that a mutual fund is the only "safe" way for an individual to invest beyond the typical savings accounts and CD's offered by their local bank. This belief is no doubt due to the success enjoyed by mutual funds throughout the 1990's, when all of the stock market benefited from the huge bull market that was driven by the tech sector. Ironically, though, just as mutual funds have soared in popularity, they have also peaked in performance, and over the last few years most have seen an astonishing lack of overall success.

So the intrepid investor goes off in search of the perfect mutual fund, only to find that there is a bewildering array of funds to choose from, and an overwhelming number of factors to consider when making that decision. Some people will forge ahead and make a decision on a mutual fund, while others will decide to go to the next level and start looking for investments that give them more control, and hopefully greater returns.

The next level for most investors is usually the stock market, where they hope to achieve phenomenal returns. But most people are not prepared for the reality of investing in stocks, which presents them with an array of choices that is several orders of magnitude greater than that offered by mutual funds. The natural question is: Which is a good stock to invest in? How do you select the one or two rising stars out of all the thousands of stocks there are to choose from?

So just like in the search for a mutual fund, the investor is stuck with the problem of how to pick which investment is the best place for his funds. At this point many people give up, which is a shame, because there are some other options available to them besides mutual funds and stocks.

The most common option considered besides stocks would be commodities. The lure of commodities is that they are able provide tremendous returns for your investment dollars due to leveraging. Leveraging simply means that for every dollar invested you are able to control more than a dollar's worth of commodity. This can lead to tremendous returns, but unfortunately commodities come with a huge downside. One of the disadvantages of commodities are broker's fees, which can be quite high per trade. Another disadvantage is market liquidity...sometimes the markets being traded don't offer enough buyers and sellers to ensure that your order can be executed in a timely manner. This can lead to unexpected losses during times of extreme market volatility.

Another disadvantage endured by commodities traders is the advantage enjoyed by the floor traders in the exchanges. These traders have a huge advantage over the retail trader because they trade with much lower commissions, and also since they have such an intimate knowledge of their market, they know what are the most likely stop and limit targets that have been set by the retail traders through their brokers. This means that they can "flush out" the retail trader by gunning for their stops and taking small incremental profits from the market. Once the small traders have been flushed out of the markets by having their stops hit, the market can continue to move in its original direction. Sadly, many of the retail traders may have been right in their opinion of the direction the market was headed, but they are now out of the market because their stops have been hit.

An alternative to consider to all of the above investment options is to trade the Forex market. The Forex market is the global, electronic, decentralized trading of the world's major currencies. In the past, only major banks government institutions were able to trade on the Forex. But recently the Forex market was opened up to retail traders who are able to trade through retail brokers.

The advantages of trading the Forex are numerous when compared to all the other investment methods. The most obvious advantage is that, unlike stocks, you don't have to search through thousands of different investment types to find a likely candidate. There are a very limited number of currencies that are traded, and most Forex traders only trade in one of the four major currencies: The British Pound, the Euro, the US Dollar, and the Japanese Yen. Each market gives enough volatility to offer plenty of trade opportunities each day. So while the stock trader is busy looking for which stock to trade, the Forex trader is already busy analyzing the market and setting up his trades.

Another advantage of the Forex is that there is no one single "common place" or exchange where the trades are made. The Forex is an electronic market that is traded globally among a network of computers, and is not centralized to any one location. This means that there are no floor traders to compete with, and no one who can "flush out" the retail trader by gunning for his stops.

Yet another advantage of the Forex market is that it is traded 24 hours a day, 5 days a week. This offers the extraordinary opportunity for traders all over the world to trade when it is convenient for them, and not be confined to trading a market that is only open during hours that would impossible or inconvenient.

One thing the Forex offers is identical to what is offered by the futures markets: leverage. Like commodities traders, the individual trading the Forex market can make fantastic returns compared to stocks, mutual funds. But unlike commodities traders the Forex market trades with much lower commissions. Instead of standard commissions, the Forex trader pays a small spread on each trade.

There are a lot of details about the Forex market, and trading the Forex market, that have been left out of this article. This is just a very quick introduction to some of the problems with traditional investing and to the advantages to be had by trading the Forex.

Be sure to check out our free ebook for more info on getting started with the Forex.

Til next time...Success to you!

-Ted

Ted is part of a group of Forex traders that makes its home at:

www.ForexProfitMentor.com

Check it out for the latest ideas on how YOU can trade the Forex for profit!

Why Forex Is A Better Investment Idea Than Stocks or Commodities

Forex, the Foreign Exchange Market, is a worldwide market for buying and selling foreign currencies. The major currencies that are traded include the U.S. Dollar (USD), Euro (EUR), British Pound (GBP), Canadian Dollar (CAD), Australian Dollar (AUD), Japanese Yen (JPY), and the Swiss Franc (CHF). The purpose of this article is not to go into the details of how Forex works, but to compare the benefits of trading in the Forex market versus trading the Equity (American stocks) or Futures markets (Commodities).

The Forex market is the largest market in the world with over 2 trillion dollars traded every day. This compares to the 200 billion dollars traded daily in the Equity and Futures market each. Because of this, the Forex market benefits from fairer prices, price stability, and better trade execution.

Forex has the advantage of being open 24 hours a day. The Forex market opens on Sunday afternoon and remains open until it closes on Friday afternoon. The Equity and Futures markets are only open Monday through Friday 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time. This gives Forex traders the opportunity to trade around their personal schedule. Also, liquidity in the Equity and Futures markets are reduced after regular trading hours.

When trading Forex, you will not incur the commissions or transaction fees that exist in the Equity and Futures markets. You pay a spread on the currency pair you are trading and costs are very low, especially when compared to the other markets.

Investment leverage in the Forex market can be as high as a 200:1 margin. In the Equity and Futures markets your average margin is 4:1. This means that you can control $10,000 worth of currency with only a 50-dollar margin.

In the Equity and Futures markets, investors are expected to fund several thousand dollars to open a trading account. In the Forex market, you can open a mini account for only 300 dollars and begin trading.

In the Equity market, short selling is very risky and comes with limitations. In the Forex market, you are able to buy long or sell short any currency pair with no limitations or difference in risk.

As an investor in the Forex market, you are able to concentrate on only a few major currencies. There are seven major currencies yielding four major currency pairs that most Forex investors concentrate on. Whereas in the Equity market, investors have over 40,000 stocks to choose from when contemplating where to invest their money.

There are many factors to consider when deciding on which market you want to spend your time and money. The Forex market provides many benefits over the other major investment markets that will allow you, the investor, to make larger profits, take less risk, and spend more time with your personal life and less time investing.

If you want to learn more about trading the Forex market, you can find tips, news, analysis and a great FREE ebook, Forex Freedom - How To Turn a $300 Investment Into $30,000 In As Little As 6 Months, visit http://www.tornadoforex.com

Forex Trading - Active Money Markets

Are you thinking of trading on the Forex money market? If you are new to trading it makes sense to deal in the more popular currencies. There are two main reasons for this. Firstly you do not want to be left with a currency where there is little interest and you may have difficulty selling. Secondly the spread between the bid/ask price is likely to be narrower, making it easier to make a profit.

There are seven major currencies, the US dollar (USD), Euro (EUR), Japanese yen (JPY) British pound (GBP), Swiss Franc (CHF) Canadian dollar (CAD) and Australian dollar (AUD).

The US dollar is the most traded currency followed by the Euro and the Yen. The Euro is the relatively new currency of the European Union although some member states, including the UK, have not changed their currency.

Obviously if you are buying a currency you must also be selling(using) another and therefore prices are always quoted in pairs, the USD/EUR being the most active. The more active a pair the narrower the difference between the bid/ask price is likely to be, with a possible spread of just two pips for the most actively traded. A pip is the smallest unit of price for a currency. Most currencies are traded to four decimal points after the first digit, so that a pip is 0.0001 or 1/100 of a cent. This may seem a minuscule amount until you realise that on a trade of $100,000 that is $10. As each trade involves both selling one currency and buying another, the difference in the spread is the cost of the transaction. If there is a 2 pip spread you must make that profit to break even. The exception to the four decimal points is the Japanese yen which is normally traded to two decimal points.

If you live in a country using one of the major currencies, when you first start trading it makes sense to begin with that currency. Not only are you familiar and comfortable with the currency, but you are in a better position to judge its strength. The internet has a wealth of information on the financial climate of a country, but if you live there you have access to all newspaper content, as well being in the unique position of experiencing first hand changes at the consumer level.

Trading on the Forex market is a high risk investment not suited to everyone. You can lose money as well as make a profit. Never risk more than you can afford to lose.

This article is for information only, any action you may take on the Forex money market is your sole responsibility and the author accepts no liability.

Margaret Tye runs the Forex Trading Articles website. You are welcome to use this article as long as the author is acknowledged and a link to http://www.forex-trading-articles.com< included.

10 Good Reasons why YOU should jump into Trading FOREX

Foreign Exchange Market is a market where traders buy and sell currencies with the hope of making a profit when the values of the currencies change in their favor. People are making vast amounts of money from Forex trading. The Forex Market has a big potential for everyone, ranging from large corporate firms to ordinary, everyday people like you and me.

It is a very exciting trade with a huge money-making potential. Just imagine yourself sitting comfortably in your pajamas at your computer... you turn on the internet and make a few quick transactions and by the time that you get up to get a cup of coffee, you are several hundred dollars rich! Would you like that? I would!! I can hear you say, "Wait a minute!! This sounds just like another one of those confusing markets like stocks, options or traditional futures, so what makes this market any different?"

Aaah! Good question! So, in answer to your question, here are 10 good (if not great) reasons to enter the Forex Trade:

1. First and foremost, Forex trading allows for small investments. You do not have to be able to invest thousands of dollars to get started with this trade. You can start trading Forex with as little as $300 to $350 and could be well on your way to earning more than that on your first day. 2. The Forex markets are always open! You are able to trade anytime and from anywhere in the world. No waiting for the stock exchange to open. The market is ongoing, with generally only minor breaks on the weekends.

3. The funds that you invest are liquid; you can cash them anytime you want. No waiting for days to get your stocks converted into hard cash.

4. The value of the Forex Trading market is COLOSSAL: it is 30 times larger than all of the US equity markets combined. It is the largest market in the world with daily reported volume of 1.5 to 2.0 trillion dollars. This massive value makes it a lucrative and desirable trade to invest in.

5. It is a highly stable trade and offers greater strength over other markets. Countries and people are ALWAYS going to need currency. Although the value of different currencies goes up and down, the fluctuations are not as dramatic as stock prices and generally follow a predictable trend.

6. You do not have to worry about commissions, exchange fees nor any hidden charges when you trade Forex. Forex brokers make only a small percentage of the bid and there are very respectable and free brokers available as well. Is that not wonderful for you?

7. You make profits no matter which way the currency is going. You will not worry about a falling currency value if you know what to do with it and make good gains.

8. Forex is a very transparent market. Unlike equity markets, where analysts have an unfair advantage over the layman because of their insider knowledge, the relevant information for Forex is equally available to every one through international news. Therefore, all Forex traders are in a position to make pertinent decisions according to the current market situations.

9. Forex market is extremely quick! It takes not more than 1 to 2 seconds to complete your transactions because it is all done electronically, online and in Real Time.

10. The final good news is that you do not need any formal education, licensing, diploma or degree to trade Forex. All you need is the know-how of how it works, trading strategies and some tips and techniques and you can be on your way to earn big profits.

Forex trading online may be the fastest path to financial freedom and an end to all your financial worries. It truly is an excellent, if not THE best home business opportunity for ordinary people.
You owe it to yourself to give it a try!!!
Prosperity and happiness to all!

Humaira Aslam is a successful internet entrepreneur
For an in-depth FREE report on Forex trading
Please visit:
http://www.4ex4all.com

Unleash Your Future with FOREX Trading!

FOREX means the foreign currency exchange, and that today alone nearly $2 Trillion will be traded by banks, governments, corporations, trading partners and private and corporate speculators. Speculators trade to make a profit by purchasing one currency and simultaneously selling another. And people like you are making handsome profits everyday from home, after hours, trading without thinking about commissions and margin calls (dreaded word for day-traders)

So is Forex for you? Yes and let me list the benefits that are available to all - including you. As stated Forex Trading is the exchange of currencies for profit, and it offers unmatched potential for profitable trading in any market condition or stage of the business cycle. No other market can make that claim - and I haven't even begun to list the cool things yet.

Here we go: * No commissions. No clearing fees, no exchange fees, no government fees, no brokerage fees. * No middlemen. You can deal directly with the market using an online trading platform. * No fixed lot size. You can start a trading account for as little as $300, because the lot sizes are not pre-determined. * Low transaction cost. True there is no official commission, but there is a spread between the bid and ask price of a currency paid. But that spread is about 0.1% of the actual transaction - making it relatively much cheaper than other markets. * High Liquidity. A trader can enter or exit the market at will in almost any market condition. Your bottleneck is your internet connection speed! You have almost instantaneous transactions. * Low margin, high leverage. These factors increase the potential for higher profits (and losses if you gamble with your money) * 24 hour market. A trader may take advantage of all profitable market conditions at any time - there is no opening bell or 'after hours' trading - its always open! * Online access - you can do this all from home or work... even on the train or plane or coffee stop with WiFi access! * Not related to the stock market! Because you can profit no matter what the stock markets are doing to the world currencies, you don't really care whether the DOW is up or not! * Interbank Market. The backbone of the FOREX market consists of a global network of dealers. They are mainly major commercial banks that communicate and trade with one another. There are no organized exchanges to serve as a central hub, like the New York stock exchange... the FOREX market will never crash because of some major world event. Sure prices may be affected, but your trading opportunities are always present. * No one can corner the market. Due to its sheer size and number of participants, not even a central bank can control the market price for an extended period of time. * No insider trading. Again because of its size and de-centralized nature, there are no significant fraud opportunities compared to other markets.

If you are familiar with either equity (stock) or futures markets - the list above will be very impressive to you. If you are not familiar with this stuff, take my word - its good news and its way cheaper than trading stocks. The profits can be staggering and so can the losses. That's why it's critical that beginners invest in a training program that will give them an understanding and trading system that minimizes losses and emphasises educated trading.

You can turn $200 into $30,000 within 6 months! All you need is a computer with Net access and the free information you can request <a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.trademoney.ca">at Trade Money<

Investing in Forex

Investing in foreign currencies is a relatively new avenue of investing. There are considerably fewer people are aware of this market than there are people aware of several other avenues of investing. Trading foreign currency, also known as forex, is the most lucrative investment market that exists. There are several factors that make this true among which, successful forex traders earn realistic profits of one hundred plus percent each month. Compared to some of the better known investment markets such as corporate stocks, this is an unheard of return on investment. It's very necessary to mention here that a person who invests in forex must, without exception, make it a point to learn the detailed, but simple strategies and information surrounding the market. This very fact is what makes the difference between successful forex traders and other traders. A few additional points, which create such powerful leverage for investors within the forex market are: The amount of capital required to begin investing in the market is only three hundred dollars. For the most part, any other investment market is going to demand thousands of dollars of the investor in the beginning. Also, the market offers opportunities to profit regardless what the direction of the market may be; In most commonly known markets investors sit and wait for the market to begin an up trend before entering a trade. Even then, investors, as a rule must sit and wait some more to be able to exit the trade with a nice profit. Given that the forex market produces several up, down, and sideways trends in a single day, it can easily be seen that forex stands head and shoulders above other markets. Additionally there are trading strategies, which are taught that provide for compounded profits; these are profits on top of profits. In addition, free demo accounts are available within the industry of forex trading, which facilitate the sharpening of skills without the risk losing any capital. And the advantage regarding the time factor in trading foreign currency is a very attractive point for any investor. Compared to one of the most sought after avenues of investing, which often requires forty or more hours each week, namely in the real-estate market, the forex market requires a much smaller demand on the investor's time. Forex trading requires approximately ten to fifteen hours each week to earn a full time income. It's easy to see that the advantages and great leverage that exist in the forex market, make it among the most lucrative, time liberating, and easy to enter by far.

I hope this information gives you a clear understanding of how you can turn your investing into a true method of making your money work harder for you.

Sincerely, Joe Clinton.

Hi. I'm Joe Clinton. I enjoy helping ohters learn valuable information that I've learned over the years.

To learn more about this incredible market and how you can position yourself among the most successful investors in the world visit www.joeforex.com. Don't forget to sign up for the free report "Forex Freedom" and get a foundation in forex lessons.

How to Become an Expert in FOREX Market

Step-by-Step Practical Guide

Step One: Choose Your Mentor

If you think carefully about Forex Market, you'll come to the realization that Forex Market is something which is in your head, only. It is your perception for the market and that perception is going to change as you grow trough the process of learning it.

The question here is: How to control something, which is in your head and you have no control of? No matter what you do, the first thing you have to put under control is: manage the mind. The problem #1 in our life is using the mind properly.

What is that has to do with the Forex Market? As you know, already, this is something which exists in your head and you have to use your mental power on its full capacity. No success can be achieved in whatever you do if you cannot control the mind. If you loose your concentration you can loose the money invested there.

How can you prepare yourself for Forex? - Follow the path of the successful players. Choose Your Mentor. Do not try to reinvent the wheel.

How to find Your Mentor? - Do your FOREX research. It is very easy. Use Internet to get very good free content on that topic. Subscribe to several free e-courses. The number of e-courses can run from 3 to 11. Visit as much websites as you can feel comfortable to handle, without being overload.

Read the information carefully and try to soak the new terminology. Do not force your self. If you are really passionate about the Forex you'll find how quickly and easy the information will be learned. Dedicate between 2 to 4 weeks to accomplish this process.

There are many websites offering free ebooks and reports on FOREX. Download as much as you want and study those materials. They usually contain a lot of valuable information. Some of them are even better then the highly overpriced ebooks, seminars and training packages.

Once you follow the above carefully, start to eliminate those sources you do not like. Raise the bar and leave just 2-3 sources of the information you are going to follow. Keep on learning from what they offer for about 2-4 weeks.

When you feel you are ready, make your decision and pick ONE source, only. Choose your Mentor. Now you can buy what is offered by your Mentor. Start serious work study process on the materials. Open DEMO account and test what you learn with fake money.

As you acquire more and more knowledge, you'll need to open another DEMO accounts. Apply the lessons immediately on the market and watch carefully for the results. At this time, your loosing trades are your best gifts. Allow yourself to loose a lot and learn as much as possible from those "bad" trades. Do not skip any lesson the market deliver to you for free.

Remember - your losing trades are going to giver you the knowledge you'll need in order to be successful in the Forex market.

Look for Step Two: Do Your Homework First.

Teo Gee

You want to learn more about that?
Get your FREE course and many other
incredible bonuses from the link below:
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Learn Forex Trading the Right WayLearn Forex Trading the Right Way

Just barely over one year ago I had never heard of the forex markets. Now I am spending a few hours a week and making incredible profits and loving every minute of it. I also spend time getting other people successfully started. Once I starting enjoying making profit on the forex market, the word got out, everyone I know started asking me if I would teach them about the world of forex trading. This is what I tell them: The first thing is get ready for a life-changing adventure! Once you get a taste of making money by sitting in front of your computer monitor, there is no turning back.

Then after getting them all fired up (I am one of these people who get passionate about things I believe in - can' help it), I get them into a free demo account as quickly as possible, usually within minutes. Then, I show them how to use an online trading station (free computer software that allows you to use your demo account to interact with the largest money market in the world - with over $1.5 trillion exchanging hands per day - HUGE market!). The wonderful thing about these free demo accounts is that they are exactly the same as real trading - unlike learning how to invest in the stock market, for example, where you have to pretend that someone will sell to you and that someone will buy from you - and that is not real at all! The forex market is so liquid (instant buyers and sellers) that both the demo and real accounts behave exactly the same! What a great way to learn - when you switch to a real account, you can't even tell.

Then, I get them to practice, using various proven techniques, with their demo account until they feel comfortable that they are consistently making profits. At first, like anything, you need to learn from experts. You need a mentor to teach you. You can't just do what you 'think' will work - you must learn techniques that really work. Trading is both a science and an art, so practice is very valuable before you start to trade for real. I tell them to be patient, the thrills are coming soon!

Then the day arrives, they open a real account and start trading in a mini account (designed for beginners or those who want to do smaller, yet real, trades). Once they see real money being made, they can hardly wait to trade in a regular account - but again I tell them to practice because now the trades are real. Because they did their homework and practiced proven techniques with the demo accounts, the transition to a real account is easy - the hardest part is learning not to shake in your shoes as they enter into this exciting arena along side the wealthiest people in the world. Keeping calm takes awhile and then they come to the realization that they too are on their way to making more money than they ever imagined.

What amazed me when I first looked into forex trading was the amount of available websites offering endless promises about riches to be made forex trading. Yet, at the same time, I quickly learned from real experts that most people who follow this advice lose all of their investment in the first few months! Wow! So, not wanting to make that huge mistake, I followed the advice I now give to my friends. Start with a demo, then a mini-account and finally move to a regular account all the while being mentored by someone who really knows how to make profits in the forex market. By following this advice myself, I survived the first few months and now make wonderful profits! I love it!

Doug Gray is a high school administrator and a forex trader. If you want to learn more about forex market trading, then check out this site and make sure you get the same information, from the same mentor that Doug learned from: http://www.ForexMarketMentor.com

Forex trading an overlooked but very lucrative market.

One of the most appealing ways to attain wealth is to play the stock market. With the advent of the Internet and on line brokers traders have seemingly unrestricted access to various trading products that just 10 years ago were reserved for big financial institutions. A trading product that has been overlooked by many traders is forex.

Forex is derived from the words FOReign EXchange and involves the trading of currencies. Until relatively recently trading forex has been the preserve of banks and other large financial institutions. In the last 5 years forex trading has literally exploded among ordinary traders. When the advantages of forex trading become apparent this is not surprising. The forex market is the largest financial market in the world with an estimated daily turnover of $1.5 trillion dollars. This is 30 times larger than all the US stock markets combined. Further more the forex market is open 24 hours a day 5 days a week.

The size of the forex market is one of its first benefits. The forex market is very liquid and has high volume. Liquidity is a great asset many traders look for because it means a deal can always be done. Forex is a continuous 24-hour market. This is very desirable if you wish to trade part-time as you can choose what time you trade unlike stock markets that are open only 8 hours a day. This 24-hour market almost removes the problem of gapping. Because most stock markets are only open 8 hours a day often-overnight events can cause stocks to gap up or down. Large gaps can especially cause large losses for people who trade derivative products like futures or options. In the forex market the problem of gapping is very much reduced.

Currencies are always traded in pairs. Usually currencies are traded in pairs against the US dollar. The main pairs are US dollar Vs EURO ( EUR), British Pound (GDP), Swiss Franc (CHF), Japanese yen (JPY), Australian Dollar (AUS), New Zealand Dollar (NZD) and the Canadian dollar(CAD). There are other currencies pairs but most traders prefer to trade the pairs above. These currency pairs are known as the majors. Currency traders have plenty of trading opportunities from these 7 major currency pairs. Compare this against the stock market where more than 8,000 stocks trade on the three primary US stock exchanges and currency traders can focus just on these 7 pairs and still make plenty of money.

Unlike the stock market there is never bullish or bearish market conditions. Currencies go up or down against each other according to how the world financial markets perceive the value of the currencies. You can sell a currency (go short) just as easy as you can buy a currency( go long). Currencies go up and down and you can trade either direction just as easily ensuring there is always plenty of trading opportunities.

Forex brokers don't charge commission or brokerage. This can be quite a large overhead in other financial markets. Forex brokers make their money on the difference between the bid/ask spread of a currency pair. As the forex market is very liquid the spread between the bid/ask is very small. As many stock traders know brokerage can be a significant transaction cost.

You can start trading forex for as little as $300 dollars. There are two types of accounts a mini forex account and regular forex account. Most forex brokers offer 100: 1 leverage which means a in a mini account you can control $10,000 currency position with $100. In a regular account $1000 controls a $100,000 currency position. This provides great leverage and an extremely efficient use of trading capitol.

Trading a mini account is a great way on how to learn to how to trade forex. When you paper trade you are having a comfortable armchair ride. You are trading without the emotions of putting real money on the table. When you trade a 1 mini currency lot you can set your stop loss so the most you lose is $100. This is a great way to learn how to trade effectively without risking much money. In most other trading products even when trading with the smallest trading lot possible you would have to risk much more. Forex provides trading opportunities for people without much trading capitol.

Many traders have overlooked forex trading. It has many benefits that all traders can use to their advantage. It offers the benefit of trading 24 hours a day in any country in the world. The forex market is a very lucrative market no trader can overlook it.

To get more information about the opportunities of forex trading visit

http://www.ultimateforextrading.com

Why Trade the FOREX?

My purpose for writing this article is to demonstrate to you the advantages of trading on the FOREX market. However, there is one myth that I want to dispel before I go further. The myth is that there is a difference between trading and investing. To dispel that myth I quote from Al Thomas, President of Williamsburg Investment Company, who wrote "If It Doesn't Go Up, Don't Buy It". He said "Everyone who invests is a trader, only the time period is different." It is a lesson that I took seriously after taking a beating in the stock market in 2000.

So now, let's compare features of currency trading to those of stock and commodity trading.

Liquidity - The FOREX market is the most liquid financial market in the world around 1.9 trillion dollars traded everyday. The commodities market trades around 440 billion dollars a day, and the US stock market trades around 200 billion dollars a day. This ensures better trade execution and prevents market manipulation. It also ensures easily executable trading.

Trading Times - The FOREX market is open 24 hours a day (except weekends) which means that in the US it opens at 3:00 pm Sunday (EST) and closes Friday at 5:00 (EST), allowing active traders to choose the times they want to trade. Commodities trading hours are all over the board depending on which commodity you are trading. Including extended trading times US stocks can be traded from 8:30 am to 6:30 pm (ET) on weekdays.

Leverage - Depending on your FOREX account size, your leverage may be 100:1, although there are FOREX brokers that offer leverage of up to 400:1 (not that I would ever recommend that kind of leverage). Leverage in the stock market can be as high as 4:1, and in the commodities market, leverage varies with the commodity traded but it can be quite high. Because the commodity markets are not as liquid as the FOREX market, its leverage is inherently riskier. Although I was never shut out of a commodity trade by the day limit, the fear was always in the back of my mind.

Trading costs - Transaction costs in the FOREX market is the difference between the buy and sell price of each currency pair. There are no brokerage fees. For both the stock and the commodity markets, there are transaction costs and brokerage fees. Even when you use discount brokers, those fees add up.

Minimum investment - You can open a FOREX trading account for as little as $300.00. It took $5,000 for me to open my futures trading account.

Focus - 85% of all trading transactions are made on 7 major currencies. In the US stock market alone there are 40,000 stocks. There are just over 200 commodity markets, although quite a few are so illiquid that they are not traded except by hedgers. As you can see, the fewer number of instruments allows us to study each one more closely.

Trade execution - In the FOREX market, trade execution is almost instantaneous. In both the equity and commodity markets, you count on a broker to execute your trades and their results are sometimes inconsistent.

While all of these features make trading the FOREX market very attractive, it still requires a lot of education, discipline, commitment and patience. All trading can be risky.

Dr. Susan Walker has been an environmental consultant for more than 20 years and have dabbled in trading in stocks and commodities for longer than she cares to remember. She is new to FOREX trading, and loves it. Please visit her at http://www.creative4xtrader.com for your free copy of "FOREX FREEDOM".

Others Vs Forex Trading

<br><p>What are the advantages of Forex over other types of investments?<p>
LOW RISK - HIGH YIELD is the first thing that comes to mind.
Forex Trading can be risky and the general rule for investing is: When the return is high the risk is high, but with correct planning and strategy combined with a certain amount of self discipline you can bring the risk factor down to a level that is quite low. It is even possible to strategically plan your market entry and exit levels and control exactly how much you profit or lose.
This can be done in a way that allows the investor to still profit even when they misjudge the market 50% of the time! Compare that to other types of investments.<p>
GEARING, is another area that stands out as a major advantage; this also substantially reduces the risk to you the investor. When you trade 1 forex "Mini lot" you will be trading a parcel of money valued at $10,000 USD
And you only need $100 USD of your own money!
If you trade a regular "Lot" you only need $1,000 USD to trade $100,000 USD.
How's that for gearing? Try and do that with other kinds of investments!<p>
LOW CAPITAL REQUIRED, many investments require a substantial amount of capital before you can take advantage of a particular investment opportunity, with Forex You only need $300 USD to "get into the market", and only need to have $100 USD in order to trade your $10,000 "Mini Lot".<p>
CONVIENIENCE, if you have a laptop and an internet connection you can make a trade in 5- 10 minutes! Depending on how long your computer takes to start up, and the speed of your connection. <p>
LIQUIDITY, many other forms of investing require tying your money up for long periods of time, and if you need to use the capital it can be difficult or impossible to access to it without taking a huge loss (Real Estate).
Not so with Forex trading. With Forex Trading you have full control of your capital.<p>
CAN PROFIT IN BULLISH OR BEARISH MARKETS,
Stock market traders need stock prices to rise in order to take a profit, Real Estate prices must go up in order to make a capital gain.
However, The Forex investor can make a profit in both situations, a rising or falling market.<p>
The Forex Market is open 24 hrs a day.<p>
Can anyone do it or do you need to be some kind of super genius?
Forex Trading isn't for the faint hearted so be warned, while you can get yourself a "Demo Account" and practice as you learn in real time in the real market.
You can't experience the emotions that come with putting your real money on the line.<p>
You can however prepare yourself well by using one of the many Forex Trading courses that are available online today.<p>
Bill Boyd is an investor and online marketer; go here to visit his site: <a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.fx-t.com">http://www.fx-t.com</a><p>
<br><h1>About the Author</h1>
<p>Bill Boyd is an investor and online marketer; go here to visit his site: <a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.fx-t.com">http://www.fx-t.com</a>

Real Forex Traders Learn to Like Losses

As a trader you have to learn how to take losses. Period. Don't be a crybaby. Learn how to take losses.

Learning how to take losses is one of the most important lessons you must learn if you want to survive as a trader. Nobody is 100% right all the time. Losses are inevitable. Even Michael Jordan and Tiger Woods lose sometimes and they're considered the best in their field. There will be trading streaks where you'll have a number of successful consecutive trades, but that will eventually come to an end you will take a loss.

As that point it's very important not to lose your head, you must remain in control of yourself. Don't have a cow man.

Take a break. Calm down and relax. Take a chill pill dude.

Until you've regained a clear mind and an ability to think logically again, stay out of the market.

Don't whine about your loss and never carry a prejudice against a loss.

The key to manage losses is to cut them quickly before a small loss becomes a large one.

I repeat. The key to manage losses is to cut them quickly before a small loss becomes a large one.

Never ever think that you will never lose. That's just ludicrous. Losses are just like profits, it's all part of the trader's universe.

Losses are unavoidable. Get over the loss and move on to the next trade.

Forex Gump is a senior professor at BabyPips.com's School of Pipsology. BabyPips.com is a funny and easy-to-understand online guide on how to teach beginners how to make money trading forex.

Trading Currency Through Online Forex Brokers

Access to foreign exchange (forex), the most extensive market on the planet, is generally through an intermediary known as a forex broker. Similar to a stock broker, these agents can also provide advice on forex trading strategies. This advice to clients often extends to technical analysis and research approaches designed to improve client forex trading performance.

Financial institutions are generally the most influential in the forex market through high-volume, large-value forex currency transactions. Historically, banks enjoyed monopolistic access to the forex markets, but through the Internet, any forex speculator can also enjoy 24 hour access to the market via a forex broker.

Forex traders have the aim of using the smallest amount of one currency, say the US dollar, to purchase another currency like the British Pound. If supply of the pound lessens in a busy market, it will cost more dollars to buy pounds, and the forex trader hopes to sell their pounds at a higher than their purchase price.

Secure web connections today allow many forex traders to work from home, where ready access to news and other technical advice informs decisions on what forex positions to take. Similar moves are being made by stock brokers, who are also moving out of banks and other traditional institutions.

Your needs in the market will influence your choice of forex broker. Online forex brokerage firms, known as houses, provide those new to the forex market with detailed research, advice and simulators to learn how to use their forex trading tools. The experienced online forex trader is catered to by other broking houses, with in-depth advice, but less focus on forex trading instruction based on the assumption that you are familiar with the forex market. To make an informed choice, it is advisable to trial several differing online forex broking houses and their trading tools to find the best fit for your needs.Jay Moncliff is the founder of http://www.forex-web.info a website specialized on Forex Broker, resources and articles. This site provides updated information on Forex Broker. For more info on Forex Broker visit: http://www.forex-web.info

Forex Brokers

 Most FOREX traders use a broker to handle their transactions. What exactly is a broker? Strictly speaking, a broker is an individual or a company that buys and sells orders according the investor's decisions. Brokers earn money by charging a commission or a fee for their services.

A FOREX broker needs to be associated with a large financial institution such as a bank in order to provide the funds necessary for margin trading. In the United States a broker should be registered as a Futures Commission Merchant (FCM) with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) as protection against fraud and abusive trade practices.

Before trading FOREX you need to set up an account with a FOREX broker. You may feel overwhelmed by the number of brokers who offer their services online. Deciding on a broker requires a little bit of research on your part, but the time spent will give you insight into the services that are available and fees charged by various brokers.

The best advertising is word-of-mouth advertising, and this is just as valid in FOREX trading as it is for any other type of business. Talk to friends and associates to see who they are dealing with and find if they have any complaints or difficulties in dealing with a particular broker.

You could try selecting a few online brokers and contact their Internet help desks to see how quickly they respond to enquiries and whether or not they answer questions to your satisfaction. Keep in mind, however, that pre-sales service may be better than after sales service. This can be true for any online business, not just FOREX brokers.

Customer satisfaction and safety are just part of the story. You want to find a broker who executes orders quickly and with minimum slippage. All online brokers should offer automatic execution and have clear policies regarding slippage. They should be able to tell you how much slippage can be expected in both normal and fast-moving markets.

Next you want to know the fees involved. What is the spread? Is spread fixed or variable according to the type of account? Are mini accounts subject to wider spreads? Are there any other charges? Smaller spreads mean more profit for the trader, but there may be a trade-off between spread and service. Look at the overall picture before deciding to go with a particular broker.

Margin accounts are the lifeblood of FOREX trading, so be sure you understand the broker's margin terms before setting up an account. You need to know the margin requirements and how margin is calculated. Does margin change according to the currency traded? Is it the same every day of the week? Some brokers may offer different margins for mini and standard accounts.

Trading software is very important for the online FOREX trader. Get a feel for the options that are available by trying out a demo account at a few online brokers. Above all, you are looking for reliability and the ability to perform well in fast-moving markets. The software should offer automatic trading and may have special features such as trailing stops and trading from the chart. Some features may only be available at an extra cost, so be sure you understand what your trading needs are and how much the broker charges to provide them.

Other information to find out about includes the broker's policy regarding minimum account balances, interest payments on account balances, which currencies can be traded and whether or not non-standard sized lots can be traded. You should also find out whether clients' funds are insured and the extent of that insurance.
This article provided courtesy of http://www.about-forex.net
 Simon Harris - http://www.about-forex.net