Benefits of forex

Although the Forex market is by far the largest and most liquid in the world, day traders have up to now focused on seeking profits in mainly stock and futures markets. This is mainly due to the restrictive nature of bank-offered Forex trading services.Unlike others, NorthFinance offers both online and traditional phone Forex trading services to all investors, with minimum account opening values starting at 100 USD.There are many advantages to trading spot Forex as opposed to trading stocks and futures. In the peoples mind there is this opinion that brokerage firms and analysis’s can change the flow of the currency. But in reality, FOREX is an independent international foreign exchange market which can be influenced by many factors but NOT by the wants(wills) of traders and brokerage firms.Because of its diversity you are able to trade FOREX 5 days a week, 24 hours a day. US, Europe and Asia the major trading sessions enable you to trade on your own schedule and make a quick respond to breaking news from all continents of the world no matter where you are located.Complied benefits from both high leverage and potential profits from both rising and falling market, Forex is very interesting for speculators from every point of view. For example, with $10,000 cash in a standard account that allows 1:100 leverage (1%), you can control up to $1,000,000 in notional value. NorthFinance charges NO commissions or fees, simply take all your profits with you. Commission-free trading is one of the most attractive features of NF. The dealing spreads are as low as 2 pips(for EUR/USD). Providing a more comfortable environment when trading. Versatility all around The overall volume of FOREX market is $2 trillion. Almost all the amount of the volume involves trading of the major currency pairs, NorthFinance clients enjoy tight spreads on these pairs.NorthFinance clients have the ability to trade in both directions, compared to other equity markets where it is more difficult to make certain trades. This gives an advantage to all our clients.It is simple to open an account, you can do it on-line within 10 minutes. With multiple means of funding/withdrawing you can start trading within one hour. Access your trading account from anywhere in the world. Our company serves clients, from over 150 countries and with a large network of world wide located offices and representatives it makes contact us easy.Trader Y opened an account of USD 50'000. He buys EUR/USD 500'000 @ 1.3500 at the market and places a stop loss order at 1.3460.This point shows that his maximum risk is USD 2'000 and his margin utilization is 10%, well above the minimum.

History

As a response to the Black Saturday crisis in 1983, the linked exchange rate system was adopted in Hong Kong on October 17, 1983 through the currency board system[1]. The redemption of certificates of indebtedness (for backing the banknotes) were sent out by note-issuing banks to peg the domestic currency against the US dollar at an internal fixed rate of HKD $7.80 = USD $1[2]. The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA), Hong Kong's de facto central bank, authorised note-issuing banks are to issue banknotes. These banks are required to have the same amount of USD to issue banknotes. The HKMA guarantees to exchange USD into HKD, or vice versa, at the rate of 7.80. When the market rate is below 7.80, the banks will convert USD for HKD from the HKMA, HKD supply will be increased, and the market rate will climb back to 7.80. The same mechanism also works when the market rate is above 7.80, and the banks will convert HKD for USD. In practice, the HKMA also set a lower limit at 7.80 (7.85 as an upper limit and 7.75 as a lower limit since May 18, 2005) for the HKD to flow within. The HKMA will buy or sell HKD in the market when the exchange rate is at (or extremely close) the lower limit and upper limit respectively. The HKD is backed by one of the world's largest foreign exchange reserves, which is several times the amount of money supplied in circulation.

Linked exchange rate

A linked exchange rate system is a type of exchange rate regime to link the exchange rate of a currency to another. It is the exchange rate system implemented in Hong Kong to stabilise the exchange rate between the Hong Kong dollar (HKD) and the United States dollar (USD). The Macao pataca (MOP) is similarly linked to the Hong Kong dollar. Unlike a fixed exchange rate system, the government or central bank does not actively interfere in the foreign exchange market by controlling supply and demand of the currency in order to influence the exchange rate. The exchange rate is stabilised by a mechanism.

Exchange rate regime

The exchange rate regime is the way a country manages its currency in respect to foreign currencies and the foreign exchange market. It is closely related to monetary policy and the two are generally dependent on many of the same factors. The basic types are a floating exchange rate, where the market dictates the movements of the exchange rate, a pegged float, where the central bank keeps the rate from deviating too far from a target band or value, and the fixed exchange rate, which ties the currency to another currency, mostly more widespread currencies such as the U.S. dollar or the euro.

Maintaining a fixed exchange rate

Typically, a government wanting to maintain a fixed exchange rate does so by either buying or selling its own currency on the open market. This is one reason governments maintain reserves of foreign currencies. If the exchange rate drifts too far below the desired rate, the government buys its own currency off the market using its reserves. This places greater demand on the market and pushes up the price of the currency. If the exchange rate drifts too far above the desired rate, the opposite measures are taken. Another, less used means of maintaining a fixed exchange rate is by simply making it illegal to trade currency at any other rate. This is difficult to enforce and often leads to a black market in foreign currency. Nonetheless, some countries are highly successful at using this method due to government monopolies over all money conversion. This is the method employed by the Chinese government to maintain a currency peg or tightly banded float against the US dollar.[citation needed] Throughout the 1990s, China was highly successful at maintaining a currency peg using a government monopoly over all currency conversion between the yuan and other currencies.

Fixed exchange rate

A fixed exchange rate, sometimes called a pegged exchange rate, is a type of exchange rate regime wherein a currency's value is matched to the value of another single currency or to a basket of other currencies, or to another measure of value, such as gold. A fixed exchange rate is usually used to stabilize the value of a currency, vis-a-vis the currency it is pegged to. This facilitates trade and investments between the two countries, and is especially useful for small economies where external trade forms a large part of their GDP. It is also used as a means to control inflation. However, as the reference value rises and falls, so does the currency pegged to it. In addition, a fixed exchange rate prevents a government from using domestic monetary policy in order to achieve macroeconomic stability.

Foreign exchange market

The foreign exchange market (Currency, Forex, or FX) market is where currency trading takes place. It is where banks and other official institutions facilitate the buying and selling of foreign currencies. [1]FX transactions typically involve one party purchasing a quantity of one currency in exchange for paying a quantity of another. The foreign exchange market that we see today started evolving during the 1970s when worldover countries gradually switched to floating exchange rate from their erstwhile exchange rate regime, which remained fixed as per the Bretton Woods system till 1971. Today, the FX market is one of the largest and most liquid financial markets in the world, and includes trading between large banks, central banks, currency speculators, corporations, governments, and other institutions. The average daily volume in the global foreign exchange and related markets is continuously growing. Traditional daily turnover was reported to be over US$3.2 trillion in April 2007 by the Bank for International Settlements.[2] Since then, the market has continued to grow. According to Euromoney's annual FX Poll, volumes grew a further 41% between 2007 and 2008.[3] The purpose of FX market is to facilitate trade and investment. The need for a foreign exchange market arises because of the presence of multifarious international currencies such as US Dollar, Pound Sterling, etc., and the need for trading in such currencies.