Leverage

Leverage

	1. The use of various financial instruments or borrowed capital, such as margin, to increase the potential return of an investment. 2. The amount of debt used to finance a firm's assets. A firm with significantly more debt than equity is considered to be highly leveraged.
	1. Leverage can be created through options, futures, margin and other financial instruments. For example, say you have $1,000 to invest. This amount could be invested in 10 shares of Microsoft stock, but to increase leverage, you could invest the $1,000 in five options contracts. You would then control 500 shares instead of just 10. 2. Most companies use debt to finance operations. By doing so, a company increases its leverage because it can invest in business operations without increasing its equity. For example, if a company formed with an investment of $5 million from investors, the equity in the company is $5 million - this is the money the company uses to operate. If the company uses debt financing by borrowing $20 million, the company now has $25 million to invest in business operations and more opportunity to increase value for shareholders. Leverage helps both the investor and the firm to invest or operate. However, it comes with greater risk. If an investor uses leverage to make an investment and the investment moves against the investor, his or her loss is much greater than it would've been if the investment had not been leveraged - leverage magnifies both gains and losses. In the business world, a company can use leverage to try to generate shareholder wealth, but if it fails to do so, the interest expense and credit risk of default destroys shareholder value.

Cross Currency

Cross Currency

	A pair of currencies traded in forex that does not include the U.S. dollar. One foreign currency is traded for another without having to first exchange the currencies into American dollars.
	Historically, an individual who wished to exchange a sum of money into a different currency would be required to first convert that money into U.S dollars, and then convert it into the desired currency; cross currencies help individuals and traders bypass this step. The GBP/JPY cross, for example, was invented to help individuals in England and Japan who wanted to convert their money directly without having to first convert it into U.S dollars.

Pair

Currency Pair

	The quotation and pricing structure of the currencies traded in the forex market: the value of a currency is determined by its comparison to another currency. The first currency of a currency pair is called the "base currency", and the second currency is called the "quote currency". The currency pair shows how much of the quote currency is needed to purchase one unit of the base currency.
	All forex trades involve the simultaneous buying of one currency and selling of another, but the currency pair itself can be thought of as a single unit, an instrument that is bought or sold. If you buy a currency pair, you buy the base currency and sell the quote currency. The bid (buy price) represents how much of the quote currency is needed for you to get one unit of the base currency. Conversely, when you sell the currency pair, you sell the base currency and receive the quote currency. The ask (sell price) for the currency pair represents how much you will get in the quote currency for selling one unit of base currency. For example, if the USD/EUR currency pair is quoted as being USD/EUR = 1.5 and you purchase the pair, this means that for every 1.5 euros that you sell, you purchase (receive) US$1. If you sold the currency pair, you would receive 1.5 euros for every US$1 you sell. The inverse of the currency quote is EUR/USD, and the corresponding price would be EUR/USD = 0.667, meaning that US$0.667 would buy 1 euro.

Pip

Pip

	The smallest price change that a given exchange rate can make. Since most major currency pairs are priced to four decimal places, the smallest change is that of the last decimal point - for most pairs this is the equivalent of 1/100th of one percent, or one basis point.
	For example, the smallest move the USD/CAD currency pair can make is $0.0001, or one basis point. The smallest move in a currency does not always need to be equal to one basis point, but this is generally the case with most currency pairs.

Scalping: Small Quick Profits Can Add Up

Scalping is a trading style specializing in taking profits on small price changes, generally soon after a trade has been entered and has become profitable. It requires a trader to have a strict exit strategy because one large loss could eliminate the many small gains that the trader has worked to obtain. Having the right tools such as a live feed, a direct-access broker and the stamina to place many trades is required for this strategy to be successful.

Scalping is based on an assumption that most stocks will complete the first stage of a movement (a stock will move in the desired direction for a brief time but where it goes from there is uncertain); some of the stocks will cease to advance and others will continue. A scalper intends to take as many small profits as possible, not allowing them to evaporate. Such an approach is the opposite of the "let your profits run" mindset, which attempts to optimize positive trading results by increasing the size of winning trades while letting others reverse. Scalping achieves results by increasing the number of winners and sacrificing the size of the wins. It's not uncommon for a trader of a longer time frame to achieve positive results by winning only half or even less of his or her trades - it's just that the wins are much bigger than the losses. A successful scalper, however, will have a much higher ratio of winning trades versus losing ones while keeping profits roughly equal or slightly bigger than losses.

The main premises of scalping are:

• Lessened exposure limits risk - A brief exposure to the market diminishes the probability of running into an adverse event.
• Smaller moves are easier to obtain - A bigger imbalance of supply and demand is needed to warrant bigger price changes. It is easier for a stock to make a 10 cent move than it is to make a $1 move.
• Smaller moves are more frequent than larger ones - Even during relatively quiet markets there are many small movements that a scalper can exploit.

Scalping can be adopted as a primary or supplementary style of trading.

Primary Style
A pure scalper will make a number of trades a day, between five and 10 to hundreds. A scalper will mostly utilize one-minute charts since the time frame is small and he or she needs to see the setups as they shape up as close to real time as possible. Quote systems Nasdaq Level II, TotalView and/or Times and Sales are essential tools for this type of trading. Automatic instant execution of orders is crucial to a scalper, so a direct-access broker is the favored weapon of choice.

Supplementary Style
Traders of other time frames can use scalping as a supplementary approach in several ways. The most obvious way is to use it when the market is choppy or locked in a narrow range. When there are no trends in a longer time frame, going to a shorter time frame can reveal visible and exploitable trends, which can lead a trader to scalp.

Another way to add scalping to longer time-frame trades is through the so-called "umbrella" concept. This approach allows a trader to improve his or her cost basis and maximize a profit. Umbrella trades are done in the following way:

• A trader initiates a position for a longer time-frame trade.
• While the main trade develops, a trader identifies new setups in a shorter time frame in the direction of the main trade, entering and exiting them by the principles of scalping.

Practically any trading system, based on particular setups, can be used for the purposes of scalping. In this regard, scalping can be seen as a kind of method of risk management. Basically any trade can be turned into a scalp by taking a profit near the 1:1 risk/reward ratio. This means that the size of profit taken equals the size of a stop dictated by the setup. If, for instance, a trader enters his or her position for a scalp trade at $20 with an initial stop at $19.90, then the risk is 10 cents; this means a 1:1 risk/reward ratio will be reached at $20.10.

Scalp trades can be executed on both long and short sides. They can be done on breakouts or in range-bound trading. Many traditional chart formations, such as a cup and handle or triangle, can be used for scalping. The same can be said about technical indicators if a trader bases decisions on them.




Three Types of Scalping
The first type of scalping is referred as "market making", whereby a scalper tries to capitalize on the spread by simultaneously posting a bid and an offer for a specific stock. Obviously, this strategy can succeed only on mostly immobile stocks that trade big volume without any real price change. This kind of scalping is immensely hard to do successfully as a trader must compete with market makers for the shares on both bids and offers. Also, the profit is so small that any stock's movement against the trader's position warrants a loss exceeding his or her original profit target.

The other two styles are based on a more traditional approach and require a moving stock where prices change rapidly. These two styles also require a sound strategy and method of reading the movement.

The second type of scalping is done by purchasing a large number of shares that are sold for a gain on a very small price movement. A trader of this style will enter into positions for several thousand shares and wait for a small move, which is usually measured in cents. Such an approach requires highly liquid stock to allow for entering and exiting 3,000 to 10,000 shares easily.

The third type of scalping is the closest to traditional methods of trading. A trader enters an amount of shares on any setup or signal from his or her system, and closes the position as soon as the first exit signal is generated near the 1:1 risk/reward ratio, calculated as described earlier.

Conclusion
Scalping can be very profitable for traders who decide to use it as a primary strategy or even those who use it to supplement other types of trading. Adhering to the strict exit strategy is the key to making small profits compound into large gains. The brief amount of market exposure and the frequency of small moves are key attributes that are the reasons why this strategy is popular among many types of traders.

Scalping

Scalping

	A trading strategy that attempts to make many profits on small price changes. Traders who implement this strategy will place anywhere from 10 to a couple hundred trades in a single day in the belief that small moves in stock price are easier to catch than large ones.
	Traders who implement this strategy are known as scalpers. The main goal is to buy (or sell) a number of shares at the bid (or ask) price and then quickly sell them a few cents higher (or lower) for a profit. Many small profits can easily compound into large gains if a strict exit strategy is used to prevent large losses.

Bid-Ask Spread

Bid-Ask Spread

	The amount by which the ask price exceeds the bid. This is essentially the difference in price between the highest price that a buyer is willing to pay for an asset and the lowest price for which a seller is willing to sell it.
	For example, if the bid price is $20 and the ask price is $21 then the "bid-ask spread" is $1. The size of the spread from one asset to another will differ mainly because of the difference in liquidity of each asset. For example, currency is considered the most liquid asset in the world and the bid-ask spread in the currency market is one of the smallest (one-hundredth of a percent). On the other hand, less liquid assets such as a small-cap stock may have spreads that are equivalent to a percent or two of the asset's value.

Market Risk

Market Risk

	The day-to-day potential for an investor to experience losses from fluctuations in securities prices. This risk cannot be diversified away. Also referred to as "systematic risk".
	The beta of a stock is a measure of how much market risk a stock faces.

Principal

Principal

	1. The amount borrowed or the amount still owed on a loan, separate from interest. 2. The original amount invested, separate from earnings. 3. The face value of a bond. 4. The owner of a private company. 5. The main party to a transaction, acting as either a buyer or seller for his/her own account and risk.
	Be sure to take into account the context in which this term is used, as the exact meaning of the term has many variations. Also referred to as "corpus".

Brokers and Online Trading: Introduction

Brokers share the undesirable reputation of lawyers, bankers and accountants. They earn a living by selectively sharing knowledge that the general public can't easily access. But, like it or not, they are the individual investor's direct link to Wall Street. Although technology and the internet have made it easier for individual investors to take control of their portfolios, the basic rule still applies: you need some kind of broker if you want to trade stocks and bonds.

In any profession, you will find people who take advantage of those who aren't in the know. Whenever you buy something, there is the possibility of being cheated. Furthermore, with a broker you purchase advice, which is hard to price. But not all brokers fit the swindler stereotype. In fact, there are many brokers who do a phenomenal job of guarding their clients' interests. There are also many discount brokerages that provide remarkable services for a reasonable price.

It's up to you to pick the broker that meets your needs. This tutorial will go over some important factors to consider when making the choice.

Gap

Gap

	A break between prices on a chart that occurs when the price of a stock makes a sharp move up or down with no trading occurring in between. Gaps can be created by factors such as regular buying or selling pressure, earnings announcements, a change in an analyst's outlook or any other type of news release.
	An example of two different gaps can be seen in the chart above. Notice how the stock closes the trading session before the first gap at $50 and opens the next trading day near $46 with no trading occurring between the two prices. Gaps are a regular occurrence in all financial markets. However, they are rarely seen in the forex market since it is highly liquid and trades 24 hours a day.

Uptick Rule

Uptick Rule

	A former rule established by the SEC that requires that every short sale transaction be entered at a price that is higher than the price of the previous trade. This rule was introduced in the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 as Rule 10a-1. The uptick rule prevents short sellers from adding to the downward momentum when the price of an asset is already experiencing sharp declines. The SEC eliminated the rule on July 6, 2007. The uptick rule was also be known as the "plus tick rule".
	By entering a short sale order with a price above the current bid, a short seller ensures that his or her order is filled on an uptick. The uptick rule is disregarded when trading some types of financial instruments such as futures, single stock futures, currencies or market ETFs such as the QQQQ or SPDRs. These instruments can be shorted on a downtick because they are highly liquid and have enough buyers willing to enter into a long position, ensuring that the price will rarely be driven to unjustifiably low levels.

Short Selling

Short Selling

	The selling of a security that the seller does not own, or any sale that is completed by the delivery of a security borrowed by the seller. Short sellers assume that they will be able to buy the stock at a lower amount than the price at which they sold short.
	Selling short is the opposite of going long. That is, short sellers make money if the stock goes down in price. This is an advanced trading strategy with many unique risks and pitfalls. Novice investors are advised to avoid short sales.

National Futures Association

National Futures Association - NFA

	An independent self-regulatory non-profit organization that regulates the futures market.
	The NFA began operating in 1982. Through the implementation and enforcement of regulatory programs, the NFA protects investors from fraudulent futures activities. It also provides arbitration and mediation services for resolving investor complaints. Since the NFA is independent, its regulations are unbiased towards any one member.

Getting To Know The Stock Exchanges

A stock exchange does not own shares. Instead, it acts as a sort of high-tech flea market where buyers connect with sellers. Every public stock trades on one of several possible exchanges such as the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) or American Stock Exchange (AMEX). Although you will most likely trade stocks through a broker, it is important to understand the relationship between exchanges and companies and the ways in which the requirements of different exchanges provide protection to investors.

How Does It All Start?
The primary function of an exchange is to provide liquidity; in other words, to give sellers a place to "liquidate" their share holdings.

Stocks first become available on an exchange after a company conducts its initial public offering (IPO). In an IPO, a company sells shares to an initial set of public shareholders (the primary market). After the IPO "floats" shares into the hands of public shareholders, these shares can be sold and purchased on an exchange (the secondary market).

The exchange tracks the flow of orders for each stock, and this flow of supply and demand sets the price of the stock. Depending on the type of brokerage account you have, you may be able to view this flow of price action. For example, if you see that the "bid price" on a stock is $40, this means somebody is telling the exchange that he or she is willing to buy the stock for $40. At the same time you might see that the "ask price" is $41, which means somebody else is willing to sell the stock for $41. The difference between the two is the bid-ask spread.

Auction Exchanges - NYSE and Amex
The NYSE and AMEX are both primarily auction-based, which means specialists are physically present on the exchanges’ trading floors. Each specialist "specializes" in a particular stock, buying and selling the stock in a verbal auction. These specialists are under competitive threat by electronic-only exchanges that claim to be more efficient (that is, execute faster trades and exhibit smaller bid-ask spreads) by eliminating human intermediaries.

The NYSE is the largest and most prestigious exchange. Collectively, as of December 31, 2007, its listed companies represent about $30.5 trillion in market capitalization.

Listing on the NYSE affords companies great credibility because they must meet initial listing requirements and also comply annually with maintenance requirements. For example, to remain listed, NYSE companies must keep their price above $1 and their market capitalization (number of shares x price) above $50 million.

Furthermore, investors trading on the NYSE benefit from a set of minimum protections. Among several of the requirements that the NYSE has enacted, the following two are especially significant:

1. Companies must get shareholder approval for any equity incentive plan (for example, stock option plan or restricted stock plan). In the past, companies were allowed to sidestep shareholder approval if an equity incentive plan met certain criteria; this, however, prevented shareholders from knowing how many stock options were available for future grant.
   
2. A majority of the members of the board of directors must be independent. However, each company has some discretion over the definition of "independent", which has caused controversy. Furthermore, the compensation committee must be entirely composed of independent directors, and the audit committee must include at least one person who possesses "accounting or financial expertise".

CME

Chicago Mercantile Exchange - CME

	The world's second-largest exchange for futures and options on futures and the largest in the U.S. Trading involves mostly futures on interest rates, currency, equities, stock indices and a small amount on agricultural products.
	Founded in 1898 as a not-for-profit corporation, the CME was called the Chicago Butter and Egg Board until 1919. In November 2000, CME became the first U.S. financial exchange to demutualize and become a shareholder-owned corporation. The trading of futures and options on futures provides a way to protect against and profit from price changes in financial instruments and physical commodities.

Clearing House

Clearing House

	An agency or separate corporation of a futures exchange responsible for settling trading accounts, clearing trades, collecting and maintaining margin monies, regulating delivery and reporting trading data. Clearing houses act as third parties to all futures and options contracts - as a buyer to every clearing member seller and a seller to every clearing member buyer.
	Each futures exchange has its own clearing house. All members of an exchange are required to clear their trades through the clearing house at the end of each trading session and to deposit with the clearing house a sum of money (based on clearinghouse margin requirements) sufficient to cover the member's debit balance. For example, if a member broker reports to the clearing house at the end of the day total purchase of 100,000 bushels of May wheat and total sales of 50,000 bushels of May wheat, he would be net long 50,000 bushels of May wheat. Assuming that this is the broker's only position in futures and that the clearing house margin is six cents per bushel, this would mean the broker would be required to have $3,000 on deposit with the clearing house. Because all members are required to clear their trades through the clearing house and must maintain sufficient funds to cover their debit balances, the clearing house is responsible to all members for the fulfillment of the contracts.

FX Jargon

The idea behind the carry is quite straightforward. The trader goes long the currency with a high interest rate and finances that purchase with a currency with a low interest rate. In 2005, one of the best pairings was the NZD/JPY cross. The New Zealand economy, spurred by huge commodity demand from China and a hot housing market, has seen its rates rise to 7.25% and stay there (at the time of writing), while Japanese rates have remained at 0%. A trader going long the NZD/JPY could have harvested 725 basis points in yield alone. On a 10:1 leverage basis, the carry trade in NZD/JPY could have produced a 72.5% annual return from interest rate differentials alone without any contribution from capital appreciation. Now you can understand why the carry trade is so popular! But before you rush out and buy the next high-yield pair, be aware that when the carry trade is unwound, the declines can be rapid and severe. This process is known as carry trade liquidation and occurs when the majority of speculators decide that the carry trade may not have future potential. With every trader seeking to exit his or her position at once, bids disappear and the profits from interest rate differentials are not nearly enough to offset the capital losses. Anticipation is the key to success: the best time to position in the carry is at the beginning of the rate-tightening cycle, allowing the trader to ride the move as interest rate differentials increase.

FX Jargon
Every discipline has its own jargon, and the currency market is no different. Here are some terms to know that will make you sound like a seasoned currency trader:

Cable, sterling, pound - alternative names for the GBP Greenback, buck - nicknames for the U.S. dollar Swissie - nickname for the Swiss franc Aussie - nickname for the Australian dollar Kiwi - nickname for the New Zealand dollar Loonie, the little dollar - nicknames for the Canadian dollar Figure - FX term connoting a round number like 1.2000 Yard - a billion units, as in "I sold a couple of yards of sterling."

What are you really selling or buying in the currency market

What are you really selling or buying in the currency market?
The short answer is "nothing". The retail FX market is purely a speculative market. No physical exchange of currencies ever takes place. All trades exist simply as computer entries and are netted out depending on market price. For dollar-denominated accounts, all profits or losses are calculated in dollars and recorded as such on the trader's account.

The primary reason the FX market exists is to facilitate the exchange of one currency into another for multinational corporations who need to trade currencies continually (for example, for payroll, payment for costs of goods and services from foreign vendors, and merger and acquisition activity). However, these day-to-day corporate needs comprise only about 20% of the market volume. Fully 80% of trades in the currency market are speculative in nature, put on by large financial institutions, multi-billion dollar hedge funds and even individuals who want to express their opinions on the economic and geopolitical events of the day.

Because currencies always trade in pairs, when a trader makes a trade he or she is always long one currency and short the other. For example, if a trader sells one standard lot (equivalent to 100,000 units) of EUR/USD, she would, in essence, have exchanged euros for dollars and would now be "short" euro and "long" dollars. To better understand this dynamic, let's use a concrete example. If you went into an electronics store and purchased a computer for $1,000, what would you be doing? You would be exchanging your dollars for a computer. You would basically be "short" $1,000 and "long" 1 computer. The store would be "long" $1,000 but now "short" 1 computer in its inventory. The exact same principle applies to the FX market, except that no physical exchange takes place. While all transactions are simply computer entries, the consequences are no less real.

Which currencies are traded?
Although some retail dealers trade exotic currencies such as the Thai baht or the Czech koruna, the majority trade the seven most liquid currency pairs in the world, which are the four majors:

EUR/USD (euro/dollar) USD/JPY (dollar/Japanese yen) GBP/USD (British pound/dollar) USD/CHF (dollar/Swiss franc)

and the three commodity pairs:

AUD/USD (Australian dollar/dollar) USD/CAD (dollar/Canadian dollar) NZD/USD (New Zealand dollar/dollar)

These currency pairs, along with their various combinations (such as EUR/JPY, GBP/JPY and EUR/GBP) account for more than 95% of all speculative trading in FX. Given the small number of trading instruments - only 18 pairs and crosses are actively traded - the FX market is far more concentrated than the stock market.

What is a pip

What is a pip?
Pip stands for "percentage in point" and is the smallest increment of trade in FX. In the FX market, prices are quoted to the fourth decimal point. For example, if a bar of soap in the drugstore was priced at $1.20, in the FX market the same bar of soap would be quoted at 1.2000. The change in that fourth decimal point is called 1 pip and is typically equal to 1/100^th of 1%. Among the major currencies, the only exception to that rule is the Japanese yen. Because the Japanese yen has never been revalued since the Second World War, 1 yen is now worth approximately US$0.08; so, in the USD/JPY pair, the quotation is only taken out to two decimal points (i.e. to 1/100^th of yen, as opposed to 1/1000^th with other major currencies).

Where is the commission in FX

Where is the commission in FX?
Investors who trade stocks, futures or options typically use a broker, who acts as an agent in the transaction. The broker takes the order to an exchange and attempts to execute it as per the customer's instructions. For providing this service, the broker is paid a commission when the customer buys and sells the tradable instrument. (For further reading, see our Brokers And Online Trading tutorial.)

The FX market does not have commissions. Unlike exchange-based markets, FX is a principals-only market. FX firms are dealers, not brokers. This is a critical distinction that all investors must understand. Unlike brokers, dealers assume market risk by serving as a counterparty to the investor's trade. They do not charge commission; instead, they make their money through the bid-ask spread.

In FX, the investor cannot attempt to buy on the bid or sell at the offer like in exchange-based markets. On the other hand, once the price clears the cost of the spread, there are no additional fees or commissions. Every single penny gain is pure profit to the investor. Nevertheless, the fact that traders must always overcome the bid/ask spread makes scalping much more difficult in FX. (To learn more, see Scalping: Small Quick Profits Can Add Up.

How does this market differ from other markets?

How does this market differ from other markets?
Unlike the trading of stocks, futures or options, currency trading does not take place on a regulated exchange. It is not controlled by any central governing body, there are no clearing houses to guarantee the trades and there is no arbitration panel to adjudicate disputes. All members trade with each other based upon credit agreements. Essentially, business in the largest, most liquid market in the world depends on nothing more than a metaphorical handshake.

At first glance, this ad-hoc arrangement must seem bewildering to investors who are used to structured exchanges such as the NYSE or CME. (To learn more, see Getting To Know Stock Exchanges.) However, this arrangement works exceedingly well in practice: because participants in FX must both compete and cooperate with each other, self regulation provides very effective control over the market. Furthermore, reputable retail FX dealers in the United States become members of the National Futures Association (NFA), and by doing so they agree to binding arbitration in the event of any dispute. Therefore, it is critical that any retail customer who contemplates trading currencies do so only through an NFA member firm.

The FX market is different from other markets in some other key ways that are sure to raise eyebrows. Think that the EUR/USD is going to spiral downward? Feel free to short the pair at will. There is no uptick rule in FX as there is in stocks. There are also no limits on the size of your position (as there are in futures); so, in theory, you could sell $100 billion worth of currency if you had the capital to do it. If your biggest Japanese client, who also happens to golf with Toshihiko Fukui, the Governor of the Bank of Japan, told you on the golf course that BOJ is planning to raise rates at its next meeting, you could go right ahead and buy as much yen as you like. No one will ever prosecute you for insider trading should your bet pay off. There is no such thing as insider trading in FX; in fact, European economic data, such as German employment figures, are often leaked days before they are officially released.

Before we leave you with the impression that FX is the Wild West of finance, we should note that this is the most liquid and fluid market in the world. It trades 24 hours a day, from 5pm EST Sunday to 4pm EST Friday, and it rarely has any gaps in price. Its sheer size (it trades nearly US$2 trillion each day) and scope (from Asia to Europe to North America) makes the currency market the most accessible market in the world.

Common Questions About Currency Trading

Although forex is the largest financial market in the world, it is relatively unfamiliar terrain to retail traders. Until the popularization of internet trading a few years ago, FX was primarily the domain of large financial institutions, multinational corporations and secretive hedge funds. But times have changed, and individual investors are hungry for information on this fascinating market. Whether you are an FX novice or just need a refresher course on the basics of currency trading, read on to find the answers to the most frequently asked questions about the forex market.