how does forex market work?
Sunday, February 2, 2014
, Posted by Ryanita at 2:59 PM
suleiman h
Answer
The forex market works as a financial instrument to act as medium with which international trade is actioned.
The foreign exchange (currency or forex or FX) market exists wherever one currency is traded for another. It is by far the largest financial market in the world, and includes trading between large banks, central banks, currency speculators, multinational corporations, governments, and other financial markets and institutions. The average daily trade in the global forex and related markets currently is over US$ 3 trillion. As such, it has been referred to as the market closest to the ideal perfect competition.
Unlike a stock market, where all participants have access to the same prices, the forex market is divided into levels of access. At the top is the inter-bank market, which is made up of the largest investment banking firms. Within the inter-bank market, spreads, which are the difference between the bid and ask prices, are razor sharp and usually unavailable, and not known to players outside the inner circle. As you descend the levels of access, the difference between the bid and ask prices widens (from 0-1 pip to 1-2 pips for some currencies such as the EUR). This is due to volume. If a trader can guarantee large numbers of transactions for large amounts, they can demand a smaller difference between the bid and ask price, which is referred to as a better spread. The levels of access that make up the forex market are determined by the size of the âlineâ (the amount of money with which they are trading). The top-tier inter-bank market accounts for 53% of all transactions. After that there are usually smaller investment banks, followed by large multi-national corporations (which need to hedge risk and pay employees in different countries), large hedge funds, and even some of the retail forex market makers. According to Galati and Melvin, âPension funds, insurance companies, mutual funds, and other institutional investors have played an increasingly important role in financial markets in general, and in FX markets in particular, since the early 2000s.â (2004) In addition, he notes, âHedge funds have grown markedly over the 2001â2004 period in terms of both number and overall sizeâ Central banks also participate in the forex market to align currencies to their economic needs.
There is no unified or centrally cleared market for the majority of FX trades, and there is very little cross-border regulation. Due to the over-the-counter (OTC) nature of currency markets, there are rather a number of interconnected marketplaces, where different currency instruments are traded. This implies that there is not a single dollar rate but rather a number of different rates (prices), depending on what bank or market maker is trading. In practice the rates are often very close, otherwise they could be exploited by arbitrageurs instantaneously. A joint venture of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange and Reuters, called FxMarketSpace opened in 2007 and aspires to the role of a central market clearing mechanism.
Although exchange rates are affected by many factors, in the end, currency prices are a result of supply and demand forces. The world's currency markets can be viewed as a huge melting pot: in a large and ever-changing mix of current events, supply and demand factors are constantly shifting, and the price of one currency in relation to another shifts accordingly. No other market encompasses (and distills) as much of what is going on in the world at any given time as foreign exchange.
Supply and demand for any given currency, and thus its value, are not influenced by any single element, but rather by several. These elements generally fall into three categories: economic factors, political conditions and market psychology.
The forex market works as a financial instrument to act as medium with which international trade is actioned.
The foreign exchange (currency or forex or FX) market exists wherever one currency is traded for another. It is by far the largest financial market in the world, and includes trading between large banks, central banks, currency speculators, multinational corporations, governments, and other financial markets and institutions. The average daily trade in the global forex and related markets currently is over US$ 3 trillion. As such, it has been referred to as the market closest to the ideal perfect competition.
Unlike a stock market, where all participants have access to the same prices, the forex market is divided into levels of access. At the top is the inter-bank market, which is made up of the largest investment banking firms. Within the inter-bank market, spreads, which are the difference between the bid and ask prices, are razor sharp and usually unavailable, and not known to players outside the inner circle. As you descend the levels of access, the difference between the bid and ask prices widens (from 0-1 pip to 1-2 pips for some currencies such as the EUR). This is due to volume. If a trader can guarantee large numbers of transactions for large amounts, they can demand a smaller difference between the bid and ask price, which is referred to as a better spread. The levels of access that make up the forex market are determined by the size of the âlineâ (the amount of money with which they are trading). The top-tier inter-bank market accounts for 53% of all transactions. After that there are usually smaller investment banks, followed by large multi-national corporations (which need to hedge risk and pay employees in different countries), large hedge funds, and even some of the retail forex market makers. According to Galati and Melvin, âPension funds, insurance companies, mutual funds, and other institutional investors have played an increasingly important role in financial markets in general, and in FX markets in particular, since the early 2000s.â (2004) In addition, he notes, âHedge funds have grown markedly over the 2001â2004 period in terms of both number and overall sizeâ Central banks also participate in the forex market to align currencies to their economic needs.
There is no unified or centrally cleared market for the majority of FX trades, and there is very little cross-border regulation. Due to the over-the-counter (OTC) nature of currency markets, there are rather a number of interconnected marketplaces, where different currency instruments are traded. This implies that there is not a single dollar rate but rather a number of different rates (prices), depending on what bank or market maker is trading. In practice the rates are often very close, otherwise they could be exploited by arbitrageurs instantaneously. A joint venture of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange and Reuters, called FxMarketSpace opened in 2007 and aspires to the role of a central market clearing mechanism.
Although exchange rates are affected by many factors, in the end, currency prices are a result of supply and demand forces. The world's currency markets can be viewed as a huge melting pot: in a large and ever-changing mix of current events, supply and demand factors are constantly shifting, and the price of one currency in relation to another shifts accordingly. No other market encompasses (and distills) as much of what is going on in the world at any given time as foreign exchange.
Supply and demand for any given currency, and thus its value, are not influenced by any single element, but rather by several. These elements generally fall into three categories: economic factors, political conditions and market psychology.
Please tell me about your forex exchange experience.?
Zolotoo
Several years ago I started tentatively to study about the forex exchange market, I have read some books about it but never had the braveness to risk real money in it, If I have to use real money I will at least pump 1000 USD which I may lose in a couple of minutes and most probably it will be the first and the last trial for me, and ofcourse I do not like that.
I want to know the best broker companies, and the best way for technical and news analysis, and if I applied a good technical and news analysis, would I be at high risk either?
Do you have any recommendations?
Answer
FXCM has worked fine for me for many years, but I find myself trading more FXY or maybe FXE than any spot, along with the options.
For example, it's a lot easier to hold a long FXY and later sell a covered call, called "legging on," and you have a relatively risk-free long position with a little theta decay going on there in case it goes nowhere or down a little. It reduces your cost basis, protects the downside somewhat reducing risk, and at the same time increases your probability of success to 67%, way over a 50/50 guess directionally with high leverage in a cash FX position. The latter is doomed from the start to failure using leverage without the tools and knowledge to handle these markets.
Having traded FX for more than a decade, I'm lost in the gov't run, debt driven, and crisis insane FX markets. Fits and starts and stop farts.
Trading is about managing risks, not guessing what a politician will do next. How about when the rules change, or suspended law? How do you measure those risks?
Quite plainly, my "recommendation" would be to avoid forex like a plague, especially and until you can call yourself a trader.
Learn to trade stocks first, if you insist on trading, then see if you can do it with leverage. Develop a trade plan and test the plan. If you can make simulator profits by trading the plan, you're good. If not, modify your plan.
Read the book by David Nassar - Rules of the Trade - available at your local Interlibrary Loan System.
http://www.dailyfx.com/forex/fundamental/daily_briefing/daily_pieces/scalping_report/2013/05/08/Forex_AUDUSD_Scalps_Target_March_Lows_Bearish_Below_1.0220.html
"Which Is Better, Buy-and-Hold or Market Timing?"
"Do You Have What It Takes to Be a Market Timer
Lefevre, Edwin - Reminiscences of a Stock Operator (story of Jesse Livermore)
O'Neil, William J.- How to Make Money in Stocks - can also be your TA instructor if you buy his paper IBD.
FXCM has worked fine for me for many years, but I find myself trading more FXY or maybe FXE than any spot, along with the options.
For example, it's a lot easier to hold a long FXY and later sell a covered call, called "legging on," and you have a relatively risk-free long position with a little theta decay going on there in case it goes nowhere or down a little. It reduces your cost basis, protects the downside somewhat reducing risk, and at the same time increases your probability of success to 67%, way over a 50/50 guess directionally with high leverage in a cash FX position. The latter is doomed from the start to failure using leverage without the tools and knowledge to handle these markets.
Having traded FX for more than a decade, I'm lost in the gov't run, debt driven, and crisis insane FX markets. Fits and starts and stop farts.
Trading is about managing risks, not guessing what a politician will do next. How about when the rules change, or suspended law? How do you measure those risks?
Quite plainly, my "recommendation" would be to avoid forex like a plague, especially and until you can call yourself a trader.
Learn to trade stocks first, if you insist on trading, then see if you can do it with leverage. Develop a trade plan and test the plan. If you can make simulator profits by trading the plan, you're good. If not, modify your plan.
Read the book by David Nassar - Rules of the Trade - available at your local Interlibrary Loan System.
http://www.dailyfx.com/forex/fundamental/daily_briefing/daily_pieces/scalping_report/2013/05/08/Forex_AUDUSD_Scalps_Target_March_Lows_Bearish_Below_1.0220.html
"Which Is Better, Buy-and-Hold or Market Timing?"
"Do You Have What It Takes to Be a Market Timer
Lefevre, Edwin - Reminiscences of a Stock Operator (story of Jesse Livermore)
O'Neil, William J.- How to Make Money in Stocks - can also be your TA instructor if you buy his paper IBD.
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