The term “Forex” is short for Foreign Exchange. Each country in the world generally has its own money or currency. Some countries may share the same currency e.g. the Euro is shared by a number of countries in Europe such as Germany, France and Spain. These currencies have to be valued against each other via some mechanism so when goods or services are bought across borders, proper pricing can be done. This valuation is essentially the Exchange rate between currencies. Exchange rates of currency can vary from day to day. They depend on a wide variety of factors such as Interest rates, Geopolitical climate and many others. Forex trading is a platform through which currencies are bought and sold according to their current rates in order to make profit.

The way it works is simple: A Forex trader purchases some amount of a particular currency which they think will rise in value against the currency they are exchanging it with. After a certain period of time, assuming that the rate rises as expected, they sell or re-exchange the previously-bought currency, making a profit. The same thing can be done with selling. So, Forex Trading is based on speculation. The trader does some analysis of market conditions and, based on that, makes an informed “guess” what direction the Exchange rate will go. The difference between Currency Trading and traditional gambling is simply that, with Forex Trading, proper analysis gives you a lot more information so you are able to better determine market direction. If it feels like throwing dice, you are doing it wrong.

Providing a small example of Forex trading will probably help you to have a clearer idea of how this whole system works. Let’s suppose that the Exchange Rate between the Euro and the Dollar is 1.2614 i.e. 1.2614 Dollars buys 1 Euro. Suppose then that, after your preliminary analysis, you conclude that the Euro is going to rise against Dollar. This basically means that, in a certain amount of time, you will need more dollars to buy the same amount of Euros than at the current rate. Please note that estimating this should be another major result of your analysis. It could be a few minutes, or it could be a few months. In this case we’ll assume it will be days. So, you buy €10 at the rate mentioned above spending $12.614 in total.

After a few days, you find that the Euro has indeed risen up in value and that €1 is now equivalent to US$1.30780. You immediately exchange the €10 for $13.078 and earn a profit of $0.464. This amount may look very small, but imagine if you had invested $10,000 instead of $10, your profit would have been a substantial $464. This example neglects the charges and differences that exist between buy and sell prices. It’s just to illustrate the point. Now imagine this sort of transaction on a grand scale. I mean trillions of dollars traded every day, and you start to understand what the Forex Market is.

Forex trading started in 1970s. It was during this time that most world governments switched over to floating exchange rates for their currencies from fixed rates. Previously these governments would peg the exchange rate of a their currency against another one, such as the US Dollar. Many economists promoted floating exchange rates as a far healthier option for the economy of any country, as it ensured a relatively less deterioration of rates due to any kind of shock or the influence of a foreign business cycle.

At present, the forex market is one of the largest markets in the world with a turn-over of more than $3.2 trillion. There are millions of banks, governments, individual forex traders, corporations and other entities trading currencies around the clock. Because the Forex Market is international, someone somewhere is always trading currencies on the market.

There is always a demand for Forex trading. With the rising trend of globalization, people need foreign currencies now more than ever. The revolution in transportation and communication industry has made it possible for people and companies of different countries do business with each other. Taking this into consideration, we find that the Forex Markets offer ample opportunities for people who are willing to learn about forex trading to profit from, provided they arm themselves with the appropriate information first.

Trading in the currency markets can be very lucrative. It can also be an easy way to lose all your money. It all depends on your approach. It doesn’t necessarily require you to go through an extensive research and study program for months. You will, however, need to invest some time and effort to digest all the information required to do well at it. Provided you trade wisely and cautiously, you can become a Forex expert within a year or so, making consistent substantial profits from it. So, where do you start? Well, at the beginning, of course.

Get a decent Internet connection

It may seem silly to have to mention this but, at least in my experience, a slow or dodgy internet connection can cost you…a lot. Part of what has made Forex Trading so accessible to regular folks is availability of high quality free software and market information. There’s a wide array of sources of information, most over the internet, so the importance of the internet is obvious.

The main reason why the quality of the internet connection comes up, aside from speedy delivery of information, is software trade execution. I once entered a trade impulsively – this is a big no-no, and this example underscores why – and, shortly afterwards, realized my mistake. I knew I needed to get out immediately. I attempted to do so but my Wireless internet connection went off at that point. I had lost a substantial amount of money by the time I got my connection back. I blamed karma. Fate was obviously after me. In truth, it was because of my unreliable internet connection. All it takes is one case such as this to destroy your trading Account. If you are going to trade seriously, get a good broadband service.

Research & planning

The second phase of Forex trading has four sub-steps: research, research, research and planning. One just cannot put too much emphasis on the importance of research in Forex trading. Read a book, or three. Get some background on world markets and how they affect each other. Remember that the Forex Market is influenced by a lot of external factors. You will need to understand correlations to maximize your profits. There is some free information available, so you don’t necessarily have to spend money. However, be wary of e-books that try to sell you systems. Get your own knowledge first…unless of course you can try them risk-free.

Along with research, formulate a feasible plan about how you will conduct your trading. If possible, write it down and treat it like a business plan. It should serve as your blueprint for trading. Think about how much you are going to invest. Also write down your short-term and long-term goals and how much loss you can afford. Your strategy will depend on this information so try to be clear and precise.

Find a broker

Your next step is to find a brokerage firm through whom you will buy and sell currencies. You need to be thorough while checking out brokers. Regulation in the Forex Market is no where near the level of other markets. There are still a number of unscrupulous firms out there that might try to defraud you. Try to find a firm that has ties with an international bank or any other financial institution. You should also check if the firm is registered with Commodity Futures Trading Commission, the US government institution that regulates fraudulent trading practices.

Along with the above, you will also want to confirm that the broker is a good fit for you. How good is their software? Do they allow you trade and view charts via website, in case you are unable to get to your own computer? Do they have a mobile application? Make sure you have all these answers. Ultimately, if you are unhappy with one, you can change to another one.

Set up a demo account and trade

All brokers should now offer demo trading accounts. These will allow you trade “fake” money against real-life conditions. Open one and trade, trade, trade! Test out your strategies for at least a few months on a demo account before going live. You will learn a lot about yourself and what you are comfortable with as a trader this way.

Once you have gone through this, you will be ready to start your Forex Trading journey proper.