Candlestick Charts For Currency Traders

By Tom OReilly

Among the many types of technical analysis available to currency traders, the most popular and the single most useful are undoubtedly candlestick charts. During the 18th. century, they were originally developed in Japan by a prominent trader of commodities who used them to chart the fluctuating price of rice. To this day they are often called Japanese candlestick charts, for this reason. In fact, many of the patterns that they form have Japanese names.

Traders were in need of something more than the simple line graphs plotting the price of a commodity at regular intervals in time, that had been used for centuries. They wanted something that could plot more variables within a two dimensional graph. Candlestick charts were even better than the bar chart showing the opening, high, low and closing prices of a commodity that were used to help traders predict future price movements and were reliable but not as good as the candlestick charts.

Charles Dow, founder of the Wall Street Journal and co-founder of the Dow Jones company, introduced them to the American Stock Market at the beginning of the 20th. century. From there they were adapted by the worldwide financial markets.

Candlestick Formation

The chart is made up of a series of 'candlesticks' which typically have a chunky body with vertical lines stretching up from the top (the upper shadow or wick) and bottom (the lower shadow or wick). The different points measure the differential in prices over a certain period of time, which might be 5 minutes, 15 minutes or longer.

The highest point reached during the time period is the top of the wick and the lowest point of the lower wick is the low. The opening and closing prices are the top and bottom of the body. The bottom of the body marks the opening price and its top marks the close. If price rose during the period the body will be white (or green or blue if colored). If the price fell during the period the prices are the other way around and to show this at a glance the body will be black (or red if colored).

How To Use Candlestick Charts In FX Trading

A chart showing 5 or 15 minute candles over a period of several hours can provide the forex trader with many patterns on which he can base a system for determining when a trend is developing. For example, when the candle body is black or red and lower than the preceding candles, it indicates that buyers are very bearish. When the candle body is white or green and higher than the preceding candles, it indicates that buyers are very bullish.

Being able to see these implications at a glance is vital in the fast moving forex markets where trading decisions often need to be made in a split second. So candlestick charts are one of the most useful visual aids for any forex trader. - 23309

About the Author:

Get free help, tutorials and adviceonDay Trading The Currency Marketcome to http://daytradingthecurrencymarket.com

How Americans Are Getting Creative With Their Investments

By Chuck R Stewart

2008 and 2009 have proven to be some of the most trying years for the stock market. It has hit all time lows and has basically everyone that had invested in stocks losing money on their investments this past year. Because of that, a lot of people are now deciding to not invest in the stock market and just saving their money in traditional savings accounts which typically do not earn much interest. For several people, losing half of the retirement or college funds has scared them into not wanting to buy stocks again. This is understandable but you should not be afraid to once again trust in the market.

The stock market has plummeted several times before alwayscoming back so if you are simply patient, it will get better over time. Another good idea is to think out of the box with your money. A good option is to use a DO, or a direct offering. This is a method to invest in a smaller company that has not gone public yet but is about to, they just need to raise capitalto make that possible. By becoming one of the investors in that smaller company, you can choose to greatly understand quite a bit about the company first.

Where do you discover a direct offering? As someone who is deciding on whether or not to invest in a DO, you can find out about these smaller companies from a financial advisor or even by a search on the world wide web. Once you have found a small company that is available, be certain you research that it is a legitimate company and not something that is just trying to take your money and run. Once that is determined to be a good choice, you will be notified when the company's shares will go on resale to the public. You can invest a large amount or a more conservative amount, that all depends on how comfortable you are with the risk factor involved. As with several opportunities that could be lucrative, there is a risk involved and the chance that your money will be lost. Thisalthough, offers those that arenervous to buy stocks oflarger companies that have already lost them money in the market a new unique way to possibly make some money differently.

As we all have seen, all large companies that end up successful have started out small in the beginning and this is your opportunity to do just that. By choosing the direct offering concept, you also eliminate the middle man which could help with your end result as well.

With the difficult economy currently, people wanting to be wise|smart] with their money are looking for alternative ways on how to invest. This is just an example of how to do that and hopefully own shares of a company that once becoming a publicly traded company will continue to prosper and therefore make you money unlike larger companies that arefailing. - 23309

About the Author:

Chuck Stewart made a presentation to a group of investors who were looking to expand their ability to find great small companies to invest in. He recently reviewed the most economical method to raise capital for a start up company.

Specialize In Trading USD (Part I)

By Ahmad Hassam

You are a currency trader. Which currency pairs are the best for trading? Focus on the four major currency pairs EUR/USD, GBP/USD, USD/CHF and USD/JPY. Consider becoming a specialist in USD. Yes, its true! You should become a specialist in trading the greenback.

Each currency pair actually is a combination of two currencies. So if you are short in GBP/USD then you are in fact selling the GBP and buying the USD. In each of the four major currency pairs, USD is part of each currency pair.

This means that you should study and understand the fundamentals that drive the US Dollar and the US economy. You should also understand the workings of the Federal Reserve System (FED). Then you have done your homework. Now you can trade any one of the four major currency pairs as all of them depend on USD.

These four major currency pairs are the most liquid pairs in the forex markets. They involve the vast majority of the currency trading. You should think like this. Majors are the most heavily traded pairs and US Dollar is half of each major pair. So if you can understand what drives the USD, it will have a huge impact on your trading plans.

What do you think; USD will weaken or strengthen in the near and medium term. The only thing you need to determine is your bias for USD before each trade. Off course develop a system that guides you in forming an educated bias. Then apply that bias to the major currency pairs.

Just a small reminder, when you buy a currency pair, you are buying the first currency and selling the second currency in the pair. Suppose, your bias is that USD is going to strengthen. You can go long on USD/CHF and USD/JPY. You can go short on GBP/USD and EUR/USD.

One bias, four trades! But each currency pair will react differently to USD. For example, if Euro is also strengthening. The currency pair EUR/USD will move less with USD also strengthening as compared to USD/JPY if JPY is weakening.

Lets say you can only afford to place one mini lot trade. You have a bearish bias for USD. What pair you should trade? You can consider going long on either GBP/USD or EUR/USD. But which one!

Take a look at GBP and the Euro both at the same time. Find out which of the two currencies is stronger right now. You should trade the stronger currency. You can find that by taking a look at the cross EUR/GBP. If the EUR/GBP cross is down, it means EUR is weakening and GBP is getting stronger. You should trade GBP/USD!

You should always evaluate the currency correlations for the major currency pairs in every trading plan that you create. Correlation is determined by what is known as the correlation coefficient. Correlation coefficient always ranges between +1 and -1. The correlations between the currency pairs are dynamic and can change any time. So you need to calculate the correlations at least on weekly basis to give you a fair idea of how the correlations are changing. - 23309

About the Author:

Mr. Ahmad Hassam is a Harvard University Graduate. He is interested in day trading and swing trading stocks and currencies. Discover A Revolutionary New Forex Robot. Develop your own Forex Trading System.

Getting Started with Foreclosure Investing

By Andre J. Keaton

If you're thinking about how to get a good deal in the housing market, or if you've been longing to buy the home of your dreams and only have a tiny budget, then a foreclosed home might be the right solution for you.

Unfortunately, some people have financial difficulties which are devastating and cause them to lose their home. You could benefit from their misfortune by purchase a foreclosure home and earn money on your investment.

These foreclosed homes can be found in various foreclosure listings from banks, government agencies, and other financial institutions. You will not run out of options in properties to invest in as these lists are often updated, sometimes daily with new listings.

There are many online sites with listings of foreclosed homes. These listings can be found in printed copy and often are posted in prominent places, and are also published and handed out to the public.

You can send letters of intention to buy or participate in foreclosure auctions to be able to purchase any one of the homes listed as foreclosed.

States each have various processes by which you can purchase foreclosed homes. There are other differences, such as how to buy property which has been seized by the government. You can save yourself some time by learning what the different processes are before you decide to purchase a foreclosed home.

There are a lot of foreclosed properties nowadays and the selling prices on these properties are lower than ever. It is a very good time to get into foreclosure investing today.

If you take care to handle each step properly, investing in foreclosures is the perfect way to maximize the returns on your extra cash. Instead of watching your money disappear with inflation, you will make a good return on your investment when you purchase a foreclosed property. - 23309

About the Author:

Are you considering entering the business of investing in foreclosure homes? Would you like to learn more about foreclosure property, REO, foreclosure auctions or other potential investment properties? Find out all the secret information that will make you better in foreclosure investing!

Learn How Choosing the Perfect Forex Trading Platform Can Make Your Everyday Trading Easier

By Alex Miller

If there is one thing that many of us have learned from trading over the years it is that it helps to be diversified in the proper direction. Because of the corrections that have taken place within the market over the past year or so, some of us are reeling and wondering how we are going to build back our portfolio again. One thing that many people are turning to now is the Forex market, simply because it is able to build back money whenever the commodities market fails.

Of course, it is impossible for you to trade one forex without using a qualified broker. Far too many individuals are unaware of the fact that a broker is the only person that is going to be able to place the trades for you. You can either call one of these brokers on the telephone, although that is quite antiquated and many times you can use the Internet and an online platform which gives you access to the broker directly more efficiently.

There are a number of different things that you need to consider whenever you are choosing from among these Forex trading platforms and making the proper choice is going to make a difference in how well you are going to trade. We have tested dozens of platforms and there are a few things that we always look for whatever we are doing our testing. Here are a few of our most important criteria, something that may help you in making your own decision.

One of the first things that you always need to look for whenever it comes to the platform that you are choosing is whether it caters to beginners or experienced individuals. Most of the platforms do a fairly good job of balancing this out but some of them come out heavy in one direction or the other. As a beginner, you would want those tutorials and advanced tools so that the platform can grow with you as you gain knowledge. Advanced users will want to make sure that it has everything that is necessary for them to trade successfully.

Customer service is also something that is held in high esteem whenever we are doing our independent testing. Many of us may not ever need to contact customer service because of a problem that occurs but if it is necessary, we certainly want to have somebody pick up the phone on the other end. Make sure that they offer use several different ways of contacting them which could include e-mail, online chat and toll-free numbers. The easier it is to contact them, the better of a platform it is going to be.

Another thing that you may be interested in is whether the Forex platform allows you to trade in certain commodities, such as precious metals or oil. Being able to diversify in this way is an excellent choice, especially if you are able to do so using the same platform and broker.

I'm not saying that it is going to be an easy thing for you to make your decision but by breaking it down into simplistic terms like this, you will be able to make a wise one. Choose a platform that is not only a good fit now but will be a good fit into the future for you. The Forex market is an excellent way for you to build your portfolio. Choosing the right platform can help you in amazing ways as well. - 23309

About the Author:

Visit our website for more information on Forex Trading Platforms