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The main purpose of the foreign currency exchange market is to make money but it is different from other equity markets. There are various technical terminologies and strategies a trader must know to deal with currency exchange. This article will give an insight into the normal operations in the foreign currency exchange market.

In the Currency Exchange market the commodity that is traded is the foreign currency. These foreign currencies are always priced in pairs. The value of one unit of a foreign currency is always expressed in terms of another foreign currency. Thus all trades incorporate the purchase and sale of two foreign currencies at the same time. You have to buy a currency only when you expect the value of that currency to increase in the future. When it increases in value, you have to purchase the currencies you have bought to make your profit. When you buy or sell a currency then the trade is called open trade or in open position and can be closed only when you sell or buy an equivalent amount of currency.

You must also understand how the currencies are quoted in the currency exchange market. They are always quoted in pairs as USD/JPY. The first currency is the base currency and the second one is the quote currency. The quote value depends on the currency conversion rates between the two currencies under consideration. Mostly the USD will be used as based currency but sometimes euro, pound sterling is also used.

The profit of the broker depends on the bid and the ask price. The bid is the price the broker is ready to pay to buy base currency for exchanging the quote currency. The ask is the price the broker is ready to sell the base currency for exchanging the quote currency. The difference between these two prices is called the spread which determines the profit or loss of the trade.

The bid and ask prices are quoted in five figures. The spread is measured in pip which is defined as the smallest change in price based on the current conversion rates of the currencies under consideration. For USD/JPY if the bid price is 136.50 and ask price is 136.55 then spread is 5 pips and you have to recover the five pips from your profit.

Margin used in the foreign currency exchange terminology refers to the deposit that a trader makes to his account to cover any losses expected in the future. A high degree of leverage is supplied by the brokers to traders for currency exchange. The ratio is 100:1 normally. The brokerage system will calculate the funds required for the current trade and will check for the availability of margin before executing any trade.

You have to understand the characteristics of foreign currency exchange market before investing your money. This market has extreme liquidity and always alive giving you wide spread opportunities to make profits. As there is so much potential for gain, there is potential for great loss too. You have to spend your time and effort and watch the market and trade at the right time to reap the profit.

Mansi Aggarwal Highly Recommends that you visit http://www.TorFx.Com for more information on Foreign Exchange And Foreign Currency.

Gold and Oil have an important relationship with the Forex market. Often these two commodities are used as a leading indicator in making trading decisions in the Forex market.

Gold

Why would gold have a negative or inverse relationship with the USD if United States is the second larger producer of Gold (out-placed Australia in 2006)?

The answer is simple (or maybe not)…

The obvious reason behind this inverse relationship is that gold is always priced against the USD: naturally a strong dollar will buy more ounces of gold (and a weak dollar will buy less ounces of gold).

But there is also another less evident reason of this inverse relationship: decades ago, during periods of uncertainty investors tend to migrate away their capital from USD to gold as a safe-haven.

Ok, to check some numbers: The USD has fallen to historic lows against some currencies including: EUR, CHF and CAD while gold (XAUUSD) has reached all time highs.

Majors that have a positive or direct relationship with gold are the Canadian dollar and the Australian dollar.

AUD - Australia is the third largest producer of gold in the world and as a result, the correlation coefficient of the AUD and Gold prices is close to 80%. So the AUD always benefits from rising gold prices and it also decreases when gold prices decline.

CAD - Canada is the third world largest exporter of the commodity. This makes the CAD and Gold move in the same direction, although its correlation coefficient isn’t as large as the AUD and Gold.

What would be the case for the EUR or other major currencies where there is no relationship (at least not a clear one)?

Other majors will have a direct relationship with gold because both of them (majors and gold) are priced in USD.

Oil Prices

Generally speaking an increase in the price of oil results in increasing costs of transportation, utility and heating costs as well as the cost of practically every finished product (particularly in oil-dependent economies such as the US, China India and other developed countries).

Arguments in favor of an indirect relationship between oil and the USD:

US accounts for only 5% of the world’s population but it consumes 25% of the world’s fossil fuel-based energy.

US imports about 75% of its oil, but owns only 2 percent of world reserves.

Because of this dependency on both oil and foreign suppliers, any increases in price or supply disruptions will negatively influence the US economy (hence the USD) to a greater degree than any other nation.

Canada is one of the few developed countries who are net exporters of energy (i.e. oil). Canada has the second largest oil reserves in the world (only behind Saudi Arabia). For this reason the Canadian dollar has a very tight positive relationship with oil prices.

Where is oil heading?

According to their prediction, world oil production was to peak sometime around the second half between 2000 and 2010 (like now?). Right now the oil barrel is pretty close to US$100, but what could happen to if this prediction is true? It will probably keep going that way for a few more hundreds…

Brain Feeder 4 - Recently a few presidents from large oil producer countries have announced their concerns about the weak US dollar and have declared they would be willing to change the oil pricing in Euros instead of US dollars. What to you think could happen to the USD if they price their oil barrels in Euros instead of US dollars?

by a.anies

http://www.trade-4x.blogspot.com

Gold and Oil have an important relationship with the Forex market. Often these two commodities are used as a leading indicator in making trading decisions in the Forex market.

Gold

Why would gold have a negative or inverse relationship with the USD if United States is the second larger producer of Gold (out-placed Australia in 2006)?

The answer is simple (or maybe not)…

The obvious reason behind this inverse relationship is that gold is always priced against the USD: naturally a strong dollar will buy more ounces of gold (and a weak dollar will buy less ounces of gold).

But there is also another less evident reason of this inverse relationship: decades ago, during periods of uncertainty investors tend to migrate away their capital from USD to gold as a safe-haven.

Ok, to check some numbers: The USD has fallen to historic lows against some currencies including: EUR, CHF and CAD while gold (XAUUSD) has reached all time highs.

Majors that have a positive or direct relationship with gold are the Canadian dollar and the Australian dollar.

AUD - Australia is the third largest producer of gold in the world and as a result, the correlation coefficient of the AUD and Gold prices is close to 80%. So the AUD always benefits from rising gold prices and it also decreases when gold prices decline.

CAD - Canada is the third world largest exporter of the commodity. This makes the CAD and Gold move in the same direction, although its correlation coefficient isn’t as large as the AUD and Gold.

What would be the case for the EUR or other major currencies where there is no relationship (at least not a clear one)?

Other majors will have a direct relationship with gold because both of them (majors and gold) are priced in USD.

Oil Prices

Generally speaking an increase in the price of oil results in increasing costs of transportation, utility and heating costs as well as the cost of practically every finished product (particularly in oil-dependent economies such as the US, China India and other developed countries).

Arguments in favor of an indirect relationship between oil and the USD:

US accounts for only 5% of the world’s population but it consumes 25% of the world’s fossil fuel-based energy.

US imports about 75% of its oil, but owns only 2 percent of world reserves.

Because of this dependency on both oil and foreign suppliers, any increases in price or supply disruptions will negatively influence the US economy (hence the USD) to a greater degree than any other nation.

Canada is one of the few developed countries who are net exporters of energy (i.e. oil). Canada has the second largest oil reserves in the world (only behind Saudi Arabia). For this reason the Canadian dollar has a very tight positive relationship with oil prices.

Where is oil heading?

According to their prediction, world oil production was to peak sometime around the second half between 2000 and 2010 (like now?). Right now the oil barrel is pretty close to US$100, but what could happen to if this prediction is true? It will probably keep going that way for a few more hundreds…

Brain Feeder 4 - Recently a few presidents from large oil producer countries have announced their concerns about the weak US dollar and have declared they would be willing to change the oil pricing in Euros instead of US dollars. What to you think could happen to the USD if they price their oil barrels in Euros instead of US dollars?

by a.anies

http://www.trade-4x.blogspot.com

You may wonder if you really need a broker. The answer is yes. If you intend to day trade, then you must have a broker. And it doesn’t matter whether you are trading stocks, futures, forex, or options: unless you are a member of the exchange, you won’t be able to place your orders without a broker.

Stock-, futures-, and options-brokers are required to pass different tests in order to obtain their licenses. These tests ensure that the broker knows his business and will be able to support you if needed.

In most cases, brokers earn their money from commissions on sales. When you instruct your broker to buy or sell, they earn a set percentage of the transaction. Many brokers charge a flat ‘per transaction’ fee.

There are two types of brokers: full-service brokers and discount brokers.

Full-service brokers can usually offer more types of investments, may provide you with investment advice, and are usually paid in commissions.

Discount brokers typically do not offer any advice or research; they just do as you ask them to do, without all of the bells and whistles.

So, the biggest decision you must make when it come to brokers is whether you want a full-service broker or a discount broker.

If you are new to investing, you may need to go with a full-service broker in order to ensure that you are making wise investments. They can offer you the skills that you lack at this point. However, if you are already knowledgeable about the market you want to trade, then all you really need is a discount broker to make your trades for you.

Selecting the right broker can be a tedious battle for most traders. There are more than a hundred online brokers today and additional choices are becoming available all the time.

You’ll need to double your diligence if you’re looking for a forex trading broker. Since the foreign exchange market is worth trillions of dollars, it offers lucrative opportunities for brokers to set up their firms online. And since the foreign exchange market is decentralized, it can be hard to identify quality brokers amongst all of the unscrupulous brokers with fraudulent practices.

Your chances of finding an honest and reliable forex trading broker will dramatically increase if you use the following guidelines:

- Always request references that you can actually speak with.

- Do a check with the local regulatory agencies and make sure that the forex trading broker is registered. For U.S.-based brokers, see if they are registered as Futures Commission Merchants (FCM) with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), and registered with the National Futures Association (NFA).

- Compare the account details, such as the minimum deposit required, leverage, spreads, and so on. Ask them specifically if commissions are chargeable, lot fees, etc. This is to ensure that you do not incur hidden costs. Some sneaky brokers will deliberately give you an impression that they are the cheapest to use, but in actual fact, they’ll hit you where it hurts when it comes to hidden charges.

- The trading platform needs to be user-friendly. Many traders, especially first-timers, find it challenging to navigate trading software. Just making sense of the charts and currency prices can be a challenge. So, if there are demo accounts, try them.

These are just a few recommendations, but they should help immensely. Remember, this broker or brokerage is going to be your teammate when it comes to making you a wealthy person. So be picky and be cautious.

Markus Heitkoetter is a professional day trading coach and author of “The Complete Guide to Day Trading,” which lays out the art of day trading in a practical hands-on approach. For more information on Heitkoetter’s day trading manual, please visit http://www.thecompleteguidetodaytrading.com

History of online day trading

The birth of day trading was made possible when the computerized, over-the-counter NASD became available in 1971. Day trading was pretty much the domain of stockbrokers and remained that way until the late 1990s, when the increasing popularity of the internet, motivated the international stock markets to move online. The consequence of this move was that day trading brokers became optional because anybody with Web access could execute their own trades, provided that they had an account with a registered online brokerage. The uptake was enormous, because by 1999, at least 25% of all trades made were done as online trading by individual investors. Day trading online grew in popularity as these investors started gaining online trading maturity. This growth found further impetus with the Dot Com Bubble as many traders could buy and sell the same share on the same day with three digit returns.

What is day trading?

The U.S. Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations defines day trading as “Placing multiple buy and sell orders for securities and holding positions for a very short period of time, usually minutes or a few hours, but rarely longer than a day. Day traders seek profits in small increments from momentary fluctuations in stock prices after paying commissions.” With day trading it is common to focus on short-term trading, where a trade could last for anything between a couple of seconds to a couple of hours. In day trading online, the number of trades made may vary from between just a few to a couple of hundred per day. It is also common to finish the day with a closed overnight position. This means that everything you bought gets sold, before market close. There are many different techniques or strategies that you can use in day trading. Some of the more common online trading systems include:

• Trend following
• Range trading
• Scalping
• Rebate Trading
• News Playing

One of the techniques that started surfacing in day trading is algorithmic trading. Algo, as it is commonly called, is favoured by hedge -, pension and mutual funds. It is estimated that 33% of all US and 40% of all UK trades during 2006 were made by algo traders. Algo trading is automated, meaning that the trader leaves it up to the computer to decide when to buy and sell. Day trading can either be done by institutions or by individuals. Individual day traders normally make use of direct trading firms that offer them direct, real-time electronic access to stock markets. For a day trader real-time access is important because it enables them to have a ‘live’ view of movements on the Securities Exchange of those stocks, stock options, currencies, futures contracts, interest rate futures and commodity futures that they are trading online.

What are the pros of day trading?

Self employment - Day trading online offers you the potential to earn really good money and it goes without saying that you will enjoy flexibility in where and when you work.

Stimulation - Trading online is both exhilarating and interesting. It requires analytical thinking and continually challenges your abilities. Every day is a new start - stagnation is not possible at all!

What are the cons of day trading?

Financing - In day trading you need money to make money - and lots of it. Day trading penny stocks could be high risk, so you will probably need to play in the bigger leagues, or at least find a happy (and profitable) balance between the two. There are also regulatory requirements around the amount of money you need in your account. In the US for example, it is $25,000.

Latent loss potential - You are pretty much at the mercy of economy figures, analyst comments, interest rates, and so forth. A single press release or a single comment could turn a profitable stock into a dead loss. This makes your income unpredictable. Day trading online can be highly profitable and produce rapid returns, in spite of being high risk. The risk is mainly due to margin use, and other day trading practices. Naturally, most risks can be managed if you remain prepared, alert and focussed. In example, when you start trading online, you will probably find that you have to exit a losing position very quickly, to prevent a loss. At the same time, you will need to move just as quickly to capitalise on any winning positions you may have. Day trading online can be a fun and even profitable adventure, provided that you have good discipline, -risk and -money management.

“The key is consistency and discipline. Almost anybody can make up a list of rules that are 80% as good as what we taught. What they can’t do is give (people) the confidence to stick to those rules even when things are going bad.” Richard Dennis, on Turtle Trading

How would you like to discover more about the methods professional traders use to make profitable trades?

Download them free here: Day Trading Course

Ian Jackson is an authority on Day Trading information, learning the hard way - and now he reveals how you can learn the business too, without all the growing pains.

The Forex exchange is the largest and the most liquid market in the world. The global forex market is estimated to have an average daily turnover of 3.98 trillion. The forex market is divided into levels of access, with the largest investment banking firms at the top.

Foreign Exchange (FOREX) is normally only accessible through a Forex broker. Just like a broker on the stock market, they provide their clients with strategies and information on forex trading. This includes technical analysis and research.

The goal of the Forex trader should be to give good performance to their clients forex trading. With today’s secure connections over the internet, many forex traders work from home. This allows them to have up to the date information and news on what positions to take.

When choosing your forex broker, it is good to find out as much as possible about them. Find out if they are registered with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) to protect you from fraud or scams. If you are looking of an online broker, you can find information on forex forums. If you read through the posts, you will generally find unbiased opinions on different brokers people have used.

Before setting up your account with an online broker, find out everything you can about them i.e. how quickly they execute your buy/sell order, what fees they charge per transaction, what the margin requirements are, and how they calculate them. Find out if the margin changes with different currencies, and what the interest rate is on account balances.

Most online brokers will have a demo account that lets you trade without risking your money. Make sure the software is reliable, and find out what features it has.

Once you are satisfied and learned enough through the demo, start off with small amounts to trade. Give yourself time to get used to the way your forex trader works. Make sure you are happy with him or her, and that he or she is making you money.

If you would like to receive free in depth information on how to become a successful forex trader, click here

Northern Rock, one of Britian’s largest mortgage banks is expected to receive emergency funding from the Bank of England today for possibly more than £4 billion ($8 billions), as the mortgage bank runs out of cash and is unable to obtain credit on the interbank money market due to the ongoing liquidity squeeze and the banks own sizeable subprime mortgage book risks. As with the earlier emergency funding of barclays, the rate charged by the Bank of England is expected to be significantly higher than the 5.75% base rate, possibly around 6.75%.

The share price is down by 50% from highs set barely 6 months ago, the current PE of 6.75 is expected to rise on profit warnings and bad debt provisions to above the recent range of 14 to 17. Technically, the chart looks oversold, but there may be blood on the street as some panic grips stock holders which may send the stock to a new multi-year low on today’s open as there is a risk of a run on the bank as savers make panic withdrawals.

The Market Oracle specifically warned investors and savers of the growing problems facing Northern Rock due to the size of its subprime mortgage book and the US subprime induced credit crunch on the 22nd of August 07 UK Housing Market Crash of 2007 - 2008 and Steps to Protect Your Wealth.

Investors : ” Trading on a PE of just 7.5 and a yield of 4% may now make the stock seem enticing, but the mark down is in anticipation of the much higher risk of mortgage defaults and repossessions in the UK as the housing market starts to nose dive. These repossessions (foreclosures) are already hitting the likes of northern rock with expectations of a tripling in the rate over the next 6 months as compared with the same period last year. This surge in repossessions will impact the earnings of the UK Mortgage banks as they make every larger bad debt provisions and issue profit warnings.

This is in addition to any toxic US Sub prime related exposure. Therefore in Northern Rock’s case a PE of 7.5 could jump many fold in a worse case scenario. ” - Nadeem Walayat, 22nd August 07

Savers : ” Invest in Fixed Interest Bonds issued by large strong banks , avoid issues from mortgage banks such as Northern Rock. Keep in mind that In the UK savers have protection at 90% of holdings of the first 35k of investments in fixed bonds and savings accounts so bare that limit in mind.” - Nadeem Walayat, 22nd August 07

Are my Savings Safe ?

Absolutely, 100% Safe!, well okay only the first £2000 is 100% safe under the UK Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS), then the next £33,000 is protected at 90%. Therefore, the maximum safety net is for £31,700 covering total deposits of £35,000, thus you could say it is highly prudent to ensure that you do not have savings of more than £35,000 with the Northern Rock or any other UK financial institution. Off course avoiding the mortgage banks with large UK subprime exposure altogether would be an even more prudent move. But for the average savings punter, there is little need to start panicking and seeking to transfer out your £3k Cash ISA accounts, other than for a higher interest rate elsewhere.

Unfortunately this is just the tip of the UK Subprime housing bust cycle Iceberg, as the credit crunch has barely begun to bite ! These are but mere credit crunch nibbles for the market participants to snack upon.

The real bites will come as the financial institutions post their quarterly earnings reports, that’s starting in October 2007. The expectations are for at least 3 quarters of deteriorating market conditions. The UK property market as anticipated has now peaked, and the credit crunch liquidity squeeze literally ensures a downward spiral well into Mid 2008.

Can the Bank of England do Anything to Avoid the Inevitable ?

It appears that the central banks have learned some lessons from the last liquidity boom. I say it appears that they have, but appearances can be deceptive! What is likely to happen is that the central banks will tow a tough line for some months, i.e. release liquidity at high rates of interest to ensure banks don’t default. But as the economies start to tank under the mounting bad debts crisis, the central banks such as the BOE will bend to the politicians, especially in the lead up to elections by making money much cheaper. This will result in higher inflation, higher commodity prices, and maybe a year or so from now the word stagflation will be hitting the headlines with regular frequency.

What else should I do now ?

I am not going to start pointing the finger at all of the likely candidates for banks that could go bust during the downward spiral. But the strategy of what to do to protect yourselves is clear and and listed in the previous article UK Housing Market Crash of 2007 - 2008 and Steps to Protect Your Wealth .

However, I could add additional pointers such as paying down your debt, cutting household expenditure and diversifying your sources of income, which is easier said then done. But this financial ‘problem’ is not going to go away anytime soon, and decisions by individuals exposed to the housing market need to be made now rather than be forced upon through circumstance.

Originally Published 13th September 2007

By Nadeem Walayat

Editor of (c) Marketoracle.co.uk 2005-07. All rights reserved.

The Market Oracle is a FREE Daily Financial Markets Forecasting & Analysis online publication. We present in-depth analysis from over 100 experienced analysts on a range of views of the probable direction of the financial markets. Thus enabling our readers to arrive at an informed opinion on future market direction. http://www.marketoracle.co.uk

Disclaimer: The above is a matter of opinion provided for general information purposes only and is not intended as investment advice. Individuals should consult with their personal financial advisors before engaging in any trading activities.

Nadeem Walayat Archive

The soaring price of gold is just a small piece in the cyclic investor puzzle. Cyclic investing is a relatively new term that describes investors that look at the financial history of the economy to try and predict the next trend before it happens.

For example, if you think back to the 1970’s you will find we had an oil crisis remarkably similar to the one we face now. It came after a major real estate boom that went bust and natural resources became highly sought after and things like gold, silver, copper became investor favourites causing the price to soar….just like today.

Cyclic investing works on the premise that the economy, or rather the leading investors follow a logical pattern always looking for a new place to park their money. Even in a recession or fully blown depression these same leading investors know of places to park their money and in the case of a stagnant economy the cyclic investors go to cash, they put their funds solidly in the banks where the interest rate is offering safe low risk returns.

So what is after the commodities boom? When the price of gold and silver and other natural resources has already topped out and the market cannot bear higher prices, the leading investors will begin to sell off causing these investment mediums to drop in price, but where do they historically go?

This cycle around it is interesting because a new investment medium has been added to the cycle mix. Since the last major real estate move and the ensuing oil crisis and commodities boom of the late 70’s we have seen a brand new type of speculative investment and that is the Dot Com investment vehicle. Is it going to turn into a regular mainstay of the economic cycle? Or was it a flash in the pan? Will we see another dot com boom at the end of the commodities bull market? My own thoughts is that it is highly likely only for one reason. It’s incredibly lucrative. It is more speculative than things like commodities but entry costs are typically low to buy into online real estate. If I was an investor…and I am….I would be looking to get into the online business and set myself up to start selling to these hungry bulls and I feel it is coming soon.

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The main purpose of the foreign currency exchange market is to make money but it is different from other equity markets. There are various technical terminologies and strategies a trader must know to deal with currency exchange. This article will give an insight into the normal operations in the foreign currency exchange market.

In the Currency Exchange market the commodity that is traded is the foreign currency. These foreign currencies are always priced in pairs. The value of one unit of a foreign currency is always expressed in terms of another foreign currency. Thus all trades incorporate the purchase and sale of two foreign currencies at the same time. You have to buy a currency only when you expect the value of that currency to increase in the future. When it increases in value, you have to purchase the currencies you have bought to make your profit. When you buy or sell a currency then the trade is called open trade or in open position and can be closed only when you sell or buy an equivalent amount of currency.

You must also understand how the currencies are quoted in the currency exchange market. They are always quoted in pairs as USD/JPY. The first currency is the base currency and the second one is the quote currency. The quote value depends on the currency conversion rates between the two currencies under consideration. Mostly the USD will be used as based currency but sometimes euro, pound sterling is also used.

The profit of the broker depends on the bid and the ask price. The bid is the price the broker is ready to pay to buy base currency for exchanging the quote currency. The ask is the price the broker is ready to sell the base currency for exchanging the quote currency. The difference between these two prices is called the spread which determines the profit or loss of the trade.

The bid and ask prices are quoted in five figures. The spread is measured in pip which is defined as the smallest change in price based on the current conversion rates of the currencies under consideration. For USD/JPY if the bid price is 136.50 and ask price is 136.55 then spread is 5 pips and you have to recover the five pips from your profit.

Margin used in the foreign currency exchange terminology refers to the deposit that a trader makes to his account to cover any losses expected in the future. A high degree of leverage is supplied by the brokers to traders for currency exchange. The ratio is 100:1 normally. The brokerage system will calculate the funds required for the current trade and will check for the availability of margin before executing any trade.

You have to understand the characteristics of foreign currency exchange market before investing your money. This market has extreme liquidity and always alive giving you wide spread opportunities to make profits. As there is so much potential for gain, there is potential for great loss too. You have to spend your time and effort and watch the market and trade at the right time to reap the profit.

Mansi Aggarwal Highly Recommends that you visit http://www.TorFx.Com for more information on Foreign Exchange And Foreign Currency.

Just as dramatic changes in the price of wheat affect farmers, bakers and ultimately consumers. So do changes in interest rates, the value of currencies and the direction of the stock market takes can send ripples and sometimes even waves crashing though the financial community. With the creation of financial futures, traders like pension and mutual funds investment managers rely on financial commodities to protect themselves against the unexpected. These traders are the hedgers of the financial futures market.

Along with the other futures markets that active with constant trading. Speculators buy and sell futures contracts depending on which way they think the market is going. World politics, trading patterns and the economy are the unpredictable factors in these markets. Rumors also play a major role. Financial speculators are no more interested in taking delivery of 125,000 francs, than grain speculators are in taking hold of 5,000 bushels of wheat. These traders are interested in making money on their gamble.

The large variety of financial futures contracts in the marketplace are always in flux. Like other commodities, they trade on specific exchanges. The Chicago Board of Trade’s U.S. Treasury Interest Rate futures, is the nations most actively traded contract. Their accounts make up two-thirds of the exchanges business.

The details of financial futures trading, are recorded daily. The value of an index contract is calculated differently from other futures contracts. This is because the price index is two steps removed from the commodity. Instead of taking delivery of a contract, that is only numbers in a computer. Traders take delivery of the cash value of the contract.

Indexes, and futures contracts on these indexes, don’t move in locked steps. When they are out of sync, index future contract prices will either move higher or lower than the index itself. Traders can make a lot of money by simultaneously buying contracts that are less expensive and selling the more expensive contracts. This technique is known as arbitrage, and the chief tool being used here, is a very sophisticated computer program that follows the price shifts.

To learn more about options trading and stock options trading then visit: http://www.LearningOptionsTrading.com