Introduction to Forex
The Basics of Forex Trading
Rollover
For positions open at 5pm EST, there is a daily rollover interest rate that a trader either pays or earns, depending on your established margin and position in the market. If you do not want to earn or pay interest on your positions, simply make sure it is closed at 5pm EST, the established end of the market day. Since every currency trade involves borrowing one currency to buy another, interest rollover charges are an inherent part of FX trading. Interest is paid on the currency that is borrowed, and earned on the one that is purchased. If a client is buying a currency with a higher interest rate than the one he/she is borrowing, the net differential will be positive – and the client will earn funds as a result. Please note that clients must be on 2% margin in order to earn funds.
Short-Selling without an Uptick
Unlike the equity market, there is no restriction on short selling in the currency market. Trading opportunities exist in the currency market regardless of whether a trader is long or short, or which way the market is moving. Since currency trading always involves buying one currency and selling another, there is no structural bias to the market. Hence, a trader has an equal access to trade in a rising or falling market.
Equity Market: Making the Transition to Forex
Equity markets can be used as a key indicator for movement in the Forex market. As technology has enabled greater ease with respect to transportation of capital, investing in global equity markets has become far more feasible. Accordingly, a rallying equity market in any part of the world serves as an ideal opportunity for all, regardless of geographic location. The result of this has become a strong correlation between a country’s equity markets and its currency: if the equity market is rising, investment dollars are coming in to seize the opportunity. Alternatively, falling equity markets will have domestic investors selling their shares of local publicly traded firms only to seize investment opportunities abroad.