How to Make Profit From Trading Forex
In the forex market, you buy or sell currencies.
Placing a trade in the foreign exchange market is simple: the mechanics of a trade are very similar to those found in other markets (like the stock market), so if you have any experience in trading, you should be able to pick it up pretty quickly.
The object of forex trading is to exchange one currency for another in the expectation that the price will change, so that the currency you bought will increase in value compared to the one you sold.
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Example:
Trader’s Action | EUR | USD |
You purchase 10,000 euros at the EUR/USD exchange rate of 1.1800 | +10,000 | -11,800* |
Two weeks later, you exchange your 10,000 euros back into U.S. dollar at the exchange rate of 1.2500 | -10,000 | +12,500** |
You earn a profit of $700 | 0 | +700 |
*EUR 10,000 x 1.18 = US $11,800
** EUR 10,000 x 1.25 = US $12,500
An exchange rate is simply the ratio of one currency valued against another currency. For example, the USD/CHF exchange rate indicates how many U.S. dollars can purchase one Swiss franc, or how many Swiss francs you need to buy one U.S. dollar.
How to Read a Forex Quote
Currencies are always quoted in pairs, such as GBP/USD or USD/JPY. The reason they are quoted in pairs is because in every foreign exchange transaction, you are simultaneously buying one currency and selling another. Here is an example of a foreign exchange rate for the British pound versus the U.S. dollar:
The first listed currency to the left of the slash (“/”) is known as the base currency (in this example, the British pound), while the second one on the right is called the counter or quote currency (in this example, the U.S. dollar).
When buying, the exchange rate tells you how much you have to pay in units of the quote currency to buy one unit of the base currency. In the example above, you have to pay 1.51258 U.S. dollars to buy 1 British pound.
When selling, the exchange rate tells you how many units of the quote currency you get for selling one unit of the base currency. In the example above, you will receive 1.51258 U.S. dollars when you sell 1 British pound.
The base currency is the “basis” for the buy or the sell. If you buy EUR/USD this simply means that you are buying the base currency and simultaneously selling the quote currency. In caveman talk, “buy EUR, sell USD.”
You would buy the pair if you believe the base currency will appreciate (gain value) relative to the quote currency. You would sell the pair if you think the base currency will depreciate (lose value) relative to the quote currency.
Long/Short
First, you should determine whether you want to buy or sell.
If you want to buy (which actually means buy the base currency and sell the quote currency), you want the base currency to rise in value and then you would sell it back at a higher price. In trader’s talk, this is called “going long” or taking a “long position.” Just remember: long = buy.
If you want to sell (which actually means sell the base currency and buy the quote currency), you want the base currency to fall in value and then you would buy it back at a lower price. This is called “going short” or taking a “short position”. Just remember: short = sell.
Bid/Ask
All forex quotes are quoted with two prices: the bid and ask. For the most part, the bid is lower than the ask price.
The bid is the price at which your broker is willing to buy the base currency in exchange for the quote currency. This means the bid is the best available price at which you (the trader) will sell to the market.
The ask is the price at which your broker will sell the base currency in exchange for the quote currency. This means the ask price is the best available price at which you will buy from the market. Another word for ask is the offer price.
The difference between the bid and the ask price is popularly known as the spread.
On the EUR/USD quote above, the bid price is 1.34568 and the ask price is 1.34588. Look at how this broker makes it so easy for you to trade away your money.
If you want to sell EUR, you click “Sell” and you will sell euros at 1.34568. If you want to buy EUR, you click “Buy” and you will buy euros at 1.34588.
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Forex profit is an idea that has been sold around the internet to people looking for easy answers to their money problems. It's elusive to most forex traders though because everyone is looking for profit at high speed. Sometimes forex profit can come quickly, but more often than not, it takes planning and patience.
If you can make a plan, and be patient and follow that plan, you can profit from forex trading. It's as simple as that.
Planning
Trading takes planning, that is just common sense. It is common sense that is usually thrown out the window in the search for fast forex profits. You have to plan your trades ahead of time, and then execute them according to your plan. The more you change your plan, the more you end up in trouble, and the less likely that elusive forex profit will end up in your pocket.
Trading takes planning, that is just common sense. It is common sense that is usually thrown out the window in the search for fast forex profits. You have to plan your trades ahead of time, and then execute them according to your plan. The more you change your plan, the more you end up in trouble, and the less likely that elusive forex profit will end up in your pocket.
Patience
Patience is the number one key to achieving forex profit. Patience combined with careful risk management will allow you to ride through poor entries and other minor forex mistakes.
Patience is the number one key to achieving forex profit. Patience combined with careful risk management will allow you to ride through poor entries and other minor forex mistakes.
Sometimes profit will come fast and other times it will take some time. If you open each trade prepared to wait for the profit to come, you will be more successful over all.
Use the Big Picture
While it's true that in forex you can trade using whatever chart time frame you want to use, it's better to use a longer time frame as you point of reference. For forex, the daily and the weekly charts are really stable for beginners. Look at the daily chart and plan your trades in the direction of the daily trend, set a stop that would be triggered if the price changed direction enough for you to feel convinced that the trend was over. There is no way to predict this for sure, it's really just a safety precaution.
There are three ways to play this trade from here.While it's true that in forex you can trade using whatever chart time frame you want to use, it's better to use a longer time frame as you point of reference. For forex, the daily and the weekly charts are really stable for beginners. Look at the daily chart and plan your trades in the direction of the daily trend, set a stop that would be triggered if the price changed direction enough for you to feel convinced that the trend was over. There is no way to predict this for sure, it's really just a safety precaution.
- You can set a take profit order for an easy target on the daily chart of 100 pips
- You can look at the daily chart over a wide range of days and look for the next support or resistance area to set a take profit
- You can set your stop to be a trailing stop that will lock on profits as the trade progresses
No matter which method you choose, this type of trading will take some patience. Forex traders, particularly beginners are prone to getting nervous if a trade doesn't go their way immediately, or if the trade gets into a little profit they get itchy to pull the plug and walk away with a small profit that could have been a large profit.
If you have set your stops and you are trading with prudent risk managment, you can just allow the trade to develop until stop or profit.
Rinse and repeat and you have yourself a forumla for making forex profit. It's all a game of averages. You are going to lose some trades and you are going to win some trades. Using the laws of probability will tip the scales in your favor as long as you follow the rules and think carefully.
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