EBOOK - Getting Started With Forex
EBOOK - Getting Started With Forex
IN FOREX
GETTING STARTED IN FOREX 1
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Foreword 3
Why Forex? 4
Mechanics of Forex Trading 6
Cash Flow in Trading 10
Margin and Leverage 11
Technical Analysis 14
Fundamental Analysis 19
Creating a Trading Plan 20
How We Got Here 21
Quiz Yourself 22
HIGH RISK WARNING: Foreign exchange trading carries a high level of risk that may not be suitable for all investors. Leverage creates additional
risk and loss exposure. Before you decide to trade foreign exchange, carefully consider your investment objectives, experience level, and risk
tolerance. You could lose some or all of your initial investment; do not invest money that you cannot afford to lose. Educate yourself on the risks
associated with foreign exchange trading, and seek advice from an independent financial or tax advisor if you have any questions.
Let's Start.....
FOREWORD 3
WHY FOREX?
The Forex market is where traders from around the world can trade the currencies of global countries
(or in a union of countries, as in Europe). The Forex market is the largest financial market in the
world, with an estimated $4 trillion transacted daily. That’s 160 times the volume of the New York
Stock Exchange. (Source: Bank of International Settlements Triennial FX Report, 2007)
To get a sense of just how large this market is, consider that the amount traded in four days could pay
off the entire United States debt.
Not only does Forex offer the benefit of being the largest market in the world, through trading
currencies, it is naturally also the most liquid market available.
Forex is a seamless, decentralized 24-hour market that follows global banking activity from one
international market to another. Unlike in other markets, Forex traders can trade 24 hours a day,
from Sunday through Friday.
LONDON
SINGAPORE
SYDNEY
PRACTICE ACCOUNTS
Forex is an easy choice for those seeking to enter a trading market. Trading can begin on a free
practice account, and then progress to live accounts with a low deposit minimum.
BUY SELL
If you buy a currency pair expecting it to If you sell a currency pair expecting it to
increase in value, you are “GOING LONG.” decrease in value, you are “SHORTING.”
Buying a currency pair is the same as buying the base currency while simultaneously shorting the
quote currency. By the same token, selling short a currency pair is the same as selling short the base
currency while simultaneously buying the quote currency.
If a trader thinks that the base currency will go up in relative value while the quote currency will go
down in relative value, that trader should buy the currency pair. If instead a trader thinks that the base
currency will go down in relative value while the quote currency will go up in relative value, that trader
should sell short the currency pair.
BUY
SELL
COMMODITY PAIRS
These pairs are highly correlated to certain commodity prices. Generally speaking, the AUD/USD and
USD/NZD correlate with gold prices, and USD/CAD correlates with oil.
CROSSES
These pairs do not contain the U.S. dollar.
USD
The most common currencies traded
84.9% are the US dollar (USD), Euro (EUR),
Japanese yen (JPY) and British pound
GBP (GBP).
13%
JPY
19%
EUR
39 %
*The total sum is calculated on a 200% basis because each currency trade always involves a currency pair.
EUR/USD
The most common currency pairs traded are 39%
EUR/USD, GBP/USD, and USD/JPY.
USD/JPY
14%
GBP/USD
9%
Source: Bank for International Settlements Final Summary Tables, Currency Distribution of Global
Foreign Exchange Market Turnover, April 2010.
For example, if EUR/USD moves up from 1.2000 to 1.2001, that is a bullish movement of 1 pip,
which in this case is an exchange rate movement of 1/100th of one U.S. cent. Major currency pairs
can routinely move hundreds of pips per day.
1.20014
PIP FRACTIONAL PIP
FRACTIONAL PIP
Providing an additional tenth of a pip allows traders to minimize their costs and take advantage of
even the most minute market movements.
LOTS
LOTS ARE A MEASUREMENT OF THE NUMBER OF UNITS OF A CURRENCY
PAIR THAT ARE BEING TRADED. USING LOTS SIMPLIFIES TRADING IN
THE FOREX MARKET, AS IT PROVIDES A STANDARDIZED TRADE SIZE.
000
100,
0 0
10,0
0
1,00
To control that position, Mary needs to post margin from the USD
10,000 of available funds in her account. With 50:1 leverage, Mary
need only pledge USD 2,000 as margin on a USD 100,000 position.
Moreover, since there is USD 8,000 of unpledged funds still in her
account (USD 10,000 – USD 2,000 margin used), Mary has room
to take an even larger position if she so desires.
Let’s assume Mary is correct and the USD/JPY price moves higher from
79.50 to 80.00. At 80.00, Mary is content with her gain, and she takes her
profit by selling an equal 1 standard lot of USD/JPY. (See next page, Figure 2)
Let’s now look at her profit and how the leverage helped her. (See next page)
JPY PROFIT / USD/JPY EXCHANGE RATE 50,000 / 80.00 JPY JPY/USD = USD 625.00
/ /
For ease, your trading platform automatically computes these calculations.
The return on investment (margin) gives a trader an idea of how much they made or lost on a trade
in terms of the investment or margin applied. In our example, we know Mary pledged USD 2,000 of
margin to her USD/JPY trade and made a profit of USD 625.00. To calculate her return on investment
(margin), divide the profit by the margin:
MARGIN
PROFIT / MARGIN USD 625.00 / USD 2,000 = 31.25% Please keep in mind that if the market was to
move against Mary’s position, she would have lost
funds. For example, if Mary bought 1 standard lot
of USD/JPY and the price moved 50 points in the
opposite direction, from 79.50 to 79.00, she would
have lost USD 632.91. The possibility exists that
you could lose all of your initial investment and be
liable for additional losses.
TECHNICAL ANALYSIS
Because the Forex market moves so quickly and aggressively, currency pairs are said to be highly
trending, with a pair’s value often following a pattern of growth or decline. With so many trades going
on every day, we are able to utilize common analytical tools to detect patterns and make predictions.
Price charts are the primary platform used by technical analysts. These exchange rate charts show
historical price patterns that can be used to help predict possible price events in the future. Some
key technical analysis tools and techniques include trends.
The concept of trends refers to a net price movement over time either to the upside or to the
downside. Currencies tend to trend frequently and for fairly prolonged periods of time. Trading
with a trend is often advocated because, in doing so, the trader is trading with the general net
flow of the market.
TREND LINES
DOWN TREND
UP TREND
SUPPORT
CHART PATTERNS
CHART PATTERNS TRACK PRICE ACTION ACROSS TIME. THESE
PATTERNS CAN PROVIDE KEY CLUES AS TO FUTURE POTENTIAL
PRICE MOVEMENT.
These indicators smooth out often choppy price action and can provide useful indications as to
price trends and trend changes.
MOVING AVERAGES
ASK
BID
There are many mathematical indicators and oscillators that can be overlaid on a price chart.
25%
FIBONACCI
THE FIBONACCI SEQUENCE IS A MATHEMATICAL CONSTRUCT BASED
ON HISTORICAL MATHEMATICAL OBSERVATIONS THAT HAVE BEEN
ADAPTED TO FINANCIAL MARKET TRADING.
Fibonacci trading is based on the Golden Mean and provides trading ratios that can be used in
determining potential target price levels and possible price turning points.
FIBONACCI
100.0%
61.8%
50.0%
38.2%
ASK 23.6%
SELL
0.0%
These patterns can be effective in highlighting the conflict between bullish buyers and bearish
sellers, and therefore can provide clues as to potential impending price movement.
CANDLESTICK PATTERN
SPINNING TOPS
SHOOTING STAR
DARK CLOUD COVER
HIGH 2 1
CLOSE CLOSE
CLOSE
OPEN
OPEN
OPEN
LOW 1 2
FUNDAMENTAL ANALYSIS
FUNDAMENTAL ANALYSIS INVOLVES THE ANALYSIS OF THE INFLUENCES
THAT MAY CAUSE A CURRENCY PAIR TO MOVE HIGHER OR LOWER.
Fundamental analysis involves the analysis of the influences that may cause a currency pair to
move higher or lower.
Generally speaking, a currency pair will move higher if the economic influences of the base
currency are more positive on a relative basis than the economic influences of the quote or term
currency (and vice versa).
If, for example, the EU economy is weaker than the US economy, the EUR/USD should go down.
If the Australian economy is stronger than the US economy, the AUD/USD should go up.
FUNDAMENTAL INFLUENCES
There are many economic factors that can cause an economic bias, which then affects the value of
currency pairs, all of which are interdependent due to our increasingly global economy.
Pure fundamental traders tend to focus on the longer-term trends of economies. Those judgments
are typically derived by analyzing the trends of economic data. If the trends suggest economic
growth of a nation, this will positively affect its currency. If the trends suggest economic decline,
this would negatively affect its currency.
Economic data for each country is released on a scheduled basis. FXDD has a calendar available
on its website at www.fxdd.com/mt.
TRADING PLAN
CREATING A SOLID TRADING PLAN IS ONE OF THE KEYS TO BECOMING
A SUCCESSFUL TRADER.
By detailing all aspects of your trading in a comprehensive plan, you can eliminate ambiguity and
potentially negative trading behaviors.
A plan for trading is similar to a plan for any other business. It is essential to ensure that the
business owner (trader) sticks with a well-thought-out and tested approach to growing the
business while minimizing risk.
Elements of an effective trading plan should include all of the most important aspects of the
trading process. This should include, at the very least:
As a part of this plan, traders should also keep a detailed journal of all trades (with reasons for
entries/exits) so that there is an ongoing assessment of exactly how well the trading plan was followed.
2012
2011 FXDD is recognized as an Inc. 5000
FXDD wins awards from the ME Forex Fastest Growing Company.
and Investment Summit and Global
Banking & Finance Review. FXDD
opens its 200,000th live account. 2010
FXDD wins 6 FX Trader Choice Awards,
including Best Overall FX Broker.
2009 Malta Ltd is granted licensing by MFSA
FXDD receives NFA approval. and starts operating in EU.
FXDD opens its 100,000th live account.
2007
FXDD opens its 25,000th live account.
2002
FXDD is founded in New York City.
1999
The euro becomes the official
currency of the Eurozone. It becomes
the second most important reserve
currency after the US dollar.
1996
Retail Forex trading begins in earnest.
1971
The Bretton Woods Agreement ends,
allowing currencies to float freely.
The US dollar becomes the primary
reserve used by many countries.
1944
The Bretton Woods Agreement is
reached, fixing the exchange rate of
44 nations to the US dollar.
MIDDLE AGES
Paper bills are exchanged in addition
to metallic coins.
ANCIENT TIMES
Currencies are developed to
exchange for goods and services.
According to the NFA and the Dodd Frank Act, what is the maximum
leverage a US trader can have?
A) 1:1
B) 50:1
C) 100:1
D) 200:1
What method of trade analysis uses past price patterns and mathematical
indicators to predict future movements?
A) Fundamental
B) Chart
C) Technical
D) Graphical
HIGH RISK WARNING: Foreign exchange trading carries a high level of risk that may not be suitable for all investors.
1. B, 2. B, 3. D, 4. A, 5. C, 6. B, 7. C, 8. B, 9. C