Thursday 13 November 2014

Lesser Known Trading Orders That Your Forex Broker Accepts

There are a wide variety of orders that your forex brokers can accept beyond the basic Market and Limit orders that you are undoubtedly familiar with. Understanding how to use them can greatly enhance the effectiveness of your trades.

•    One cancels the other (OCO). In this type of order, one of your limit orders is executed while the other is automatically cancelled depending on the conditions you’ve set and the prevailing market conditions.  To illustrate how this works, let’s say you’re trading the EUR/USD currency pair and the exchange rate is currently at 1.9850.  You set your limit buy order at 1.9855. However, you can also profit if the price falls below 1.9850 so you set another limit sell order at 1.9845. If one or the other trigger level is reached, one order will be executed while the other is cancelled, creating an OCO situation.

•    Cancel/Replace. This is not an order but a procedure of adjusting your orders in reaction to changing market conditions. To illustrate, let’s look at the example above. You set a stop/loss order at 1.9846. But let’s say the market remains bullish and you decide that you want to lock in more profit. So you cancel your original stop/loss and replace it with a new one at 1.9865. You can keep using the cancel/replace order to adjust your stop/loss orders until you exit the trade.

•    You can also tell brokers how long you want your orders to be effective by adding GTC and GFD orders. GTC stands for Good Till Cancelled and means that the order will be active until the conditions set are met or you manually cancel the order. For example, if you have a Limit order to buy euros at 1.9855, it will continue to be active as long as the euro has not yet reached that level or you tell the broker to cancel the Limit order. This type of order can be useful if you want to enter a position on the euro but are waiting for the right time. On the other hand, if you forget about the order, you might be surprised if it suddenly is executed, so you should always be aware of which orders are under GTC status. On the other hand, GFD means Good For Day and means that the order will only be effective until the end of the business day. Hence, your orders with GFD status will automatically be cancelled as part of the broker’s end of day processing duties.


Content credit goes to MTrading India

Tuesday 2 September 2014

What Is Mirror Trading?

The approach most forex investors use to increase their chances of earning for themselves bounties is called mirror trading. This is done by first finding a successful trader such as a financial company then mirroring how it was able to profit. For them, when a strategy has worked for others before and with the help of a reputable broker, it is likely to work again. Here’s more on the matter.

Implementing the Strategy

Mirror trading begins by finding a broker. He then presents a variety of strategies for the investor to go over. As he makes a choice, he is informed of the pros and cons of the particular method and he determines whether he can handle a potential loss. If he is set, he will just wait for the trading to start and he will be notified when it is over.

A Typical Mirror Trader

Because all exchanges are automated after a strategy to be mirrored was chosen, a trader tends to be emotionless. This is brought about by not having anything to worry about especially when he enters and exits a trade. All he has to be concerned with are the results which, even when he wants to, he can’t manipulate.

The Advantage


Other than the fact that it has been determined what strategy is successful, mirror trading has the benefit of there being a number of techniques to choose from. Most investors rely on this approach as a way to be less involved with the industry. You just need to set a goal then go with any proven method to have it achieved.

The Disadvantage

A downside to mirror trading is that summaries of outcomes can be misleading. That said, it is not a strategy for novice investors to use. Mostly, a mirror account is much larger than average ones as it is a general forex rule to not bargain money that you can’t afford to lose. In mirror trading, the importance of experience is highlighted.

Mirror Trading versus Copy Trading

As both mirror trading and copy trading are similar in concept, they are often thought to be one and the same. However, there’s a slight difference on how each of the forex strategies go. In mirror trading, you find a successful trader, employ one or two of his methods, and wait for results but during the process, you can adjust the stakes. Whereas, in copy trading, you simply duplicate another trader’s ways by investing as much as he did and in turn, gaining a set amount.

Because with the mirror trading strategy, the investor is granted the assurance that an experienced trader has gained from the technique he’s about to implement, he becomes a bit more confident with what he’s willing to risk. Though it could still go either way, he can rest better having a hint of what his chances are.

Thursday 7 August 2014

A Comprehensive Guide to Forex Trading Accounts

If you are one of those who wish to enter the Forex market, then you should consider familiarizing yourself with the different types of Forex trading accounts and the procedures involved in opening one.  Bear in mind that you will be unable to take part of all the activities in the Forex market if you do not open a Forex account.

Before opening trading accounts, it is advisable for you to hire a reliable broker.  A reliable broker can help you figure out which among the available trading accounts is perfect for you.  Dealing with a good and reputable broker is also a major help in ensuring that you get a wonderful experience once you start to trade in the Forex market.

When opening Forex trading accounts, you should know that your chosen broker may ask you a few essential details.  These include your name, birth date, full address, email address, contact number, your preferred account currency type, your preferred account password, current employment status, tax ID or social security number, citizenship, your trading objectives, any previous experience in trading and your yearly income and net worth.  All these information are essential in determining the best out of the many different types of trading accounts at present.  The following are among the most basic types of trading accounts:

1.  Standard Trading Accounts.  These are the most conventional trading accounts that you can find in the Forex market at present.  Standard accounts are among those that are used by most traders. Opening a standard account allows you to start trading using standard lots, usually those that are worth one hundred thousand units of the traded currency pair’s base.  This is one of the most risky accounts so it is no longer surprising why most beginners prefer to open another account instead of the standard one.  But despite their risky nature, the standard trading accounts are still the most profitable.

2.  Mini Forex Trading Accounts.  Although these trading accounts are considered to be not as conventional as the standard ones, these are still good accounts.  This permits you to do trades in mini lots.  This means that the amount that you can trade is only worth ten thousand units of the currency pair’s base.  Mini trading accounts are perfect for you if you are not yet an expert in trading and you are still planning to practice. This is ideal for you if you are still a beginner who does not want to risk a substantial amount when trading.

3.  Micro Trading Accounts.  These accounts are even less conventional than the mini accounts.  If you choose a good broker, then expect him to be able to provide you with a micro account.  Under this type, you can start trading using micro lots or those that are only worth one thousand units.  Most expert Forex traders do not open a micro account.  Just like the mini accounts, the micro trading accounts are primarily designed for beginners who still want to practice their skills in trading without losing a significant sum of money.

4.  Demo Trading Accounts.  These are among the most common accounts in Forex trading.  It is highly recommended for you to look for a broker who can open up a demo account.  The reason behind this is that this account will allow you to try the platform used by your broker before you actually make your deposit.  A demo account gives you the opportunity to trade in the Forex market but with the help of virtual money.  This means that you will never be at risk of losing real money when trading using demo Forex trading accounts.  This is a good way to learn everything that you need to learn about the Forex market.


Want to try a Forex Account? Here below are a few top Forex brokers from Nigeria:

www.mtrading.ng - Nigeria's most trusted Forex broker.
Instaforexnaira.com - A local broker
www.instafxng.com - Insta Forex.




Wednesday 9 July 2014

Forex Essentials - A Beginner Guide

Millions of people conduct forex trading on a daily basis. It is conducted 24 hours a day and seven days a week, and most probably have made tons of money for profit.

What is forex really all about? What makes people enticed to it?

Forex Overview

The foreign exchange market, or forex as it’s more commonly called, is a market that deals with currency trading. Large international banks take part in trading, and the market deals with various financial institutions.

To do forex trading, you don’t have to be an economist. You don’t have to be a mathematical wizard. You don’t have to be a genius. Whoever you are, you can trade if you wish to. It’s open to anyone, to everyone.

What You Need to Learn in Forex

Just like any other venture, before you do any major actions, you have to learn the basics first.

  • Choose a suitable broker. You just don’t pick out a broker who promises huge gains in just a few trades. Choosing a broker is a chore as there are a lot of them to select from – but that doesn’t mean you’ll opt for one just because you’re tired of looking for another one. Consider the options they have to offer, then pick out one that will most likely help you succeed.
  • Define your strategy. Study fundamental and technical analysis and see which actions will benefit you most. You don’t have to ultimately lean on one kind of tactic; sometimes, a mixture will help you more, depending on your personality.
  • The next step is to create a demo account. Brokers usually give a trial period of a month to test things out. The demo account gives you the opportunity to trade using play money. Doing trades in a forex demo account is similar to driving in a range; you’re already behind the wheel but you’re still in a controlled environment.


Trading Time

Once you’re fairly familiar with the process and navigation as well as your planned strategy, you can now proceed with trading on a live forex account. Your first trade is an understandably nerve-wracking experience especially that real money is now in play.


  • Study your trading environment. This is where all you learned will be in action. You’ll now be spending real money. Everything’s now for real.
  •  Leverage is already possible. Leverage provides you the ability to trade amounts larger than the funds on your account. To illustrate it further, you can do a $10,000 trade even though you only have $1,000 in your account.

The usual scenario is this: when you’re using the demo account, you’re probably courageous and risky. When it comes to live accounts, you’re not. Don’t fret; it’s usually the case. What the demo account does is to prepare you for the technical areas of trading; when the live accounts are activated, emotions will come to play.

Forex trading may prove to be hard, but as long as you’re able to manage your money and control your emotions, you’re going to be just fine. It’s a learning process with a huge cost for mistakes, but if you learn from those mistakes and avoid them moving forward, then you can become a good forex trader.