With two trillion in trades every day in the Forex market, yet with only five percent making huge profits, this seems to indicate not very many people are depending on Forex research to make their trading decisions. This is because most people tend to make their trading decisions based on instinct and intuition instead of Forex research. If they would look at Forex research more closely they could be making huge profits, like the small five percent who tend to do better because they do look at the research.

Forex research indicates that the Forex market tends to move like a wave or remain neutral. Those who pay attention to the wave pattern and are aware when and where it's going, they can invest and sell at the right time. Because of the fairly simple pattern, those who do follow Forex research closely can easily take advantage of it and make unlimited profits.

Another thing found in Forex research is that this market is very sensitive to major world happenings. This means political developments; corporate crises, natural calamities and wars can all have an effect on the Forex market. Those who pay attention to Forex research and can see this trend can also have a huge leg up on those who do not. Of course the trader who wishes to have someone else do the research for them could hire someone to do so, for a small fee.

Forex research uses two basic approaches to determine the best way to invest in Forex markets. One of these approaches is called fundamental while the other is called technical analysis. In Forex research fundamental analysis is what is used to determine external factors and how they can affect the prices and investment opportunities. While with technical analysis focuses on the patterns and how they affect the prices and investments. This focuses on internal patterns and can be applied to any time frame. Forex research uses both of these and combines them to determine the best way to invest. A lot of times the best approach is to focus on the technical analysis more than on fundamental analysis. This is because the patterns in technical analysis are easier to predict than external factors that are determined with fundamental analysis.

In the end being able to understand the research and how it is being conducted can definitely help you in making the right investment at the right time. By fully understanding Forex research you can make the right decisions in investing on the world market when using Forex to do so

Forex offers many support services for its traders, including Forex signal trading. Either Forex brokers or independent analysts monitor and analyze the market. Signal trading includes identifying trends. They identify these trends in the Forex market by using many varied and subtle indicators. These indicators are used in Forex signal trading to help indicate to traders a good time to buy or sell, though these Forex brokers and analysts do charge a fee for their services. But having the option of using signal trading can make the difference between no profits and huge ones.

A lot of times in Forex signal trade they only monitor the most popular currencies. These include pairs such as EUR/USD, USD/JPY, GBP/USD and USD/CHF. Though if you are interested you may find Forex signal services for the less common currencies and pairs. These however may charge a higher fee for their services.

There are some individual services included in Forex signal trading that are generally offered. A lot of basic subscriptions to these services will email alerts for the best times to buy and sell. A little bit higher level of subscription though will alert you about these via cell phone or pager. Some levels of subscription for Forex signal trade will provide the subscriber with live charts, in order for the trader to make their own decisions if they so choose to do so. Usually the minimum subscription fee is one hundred dollars a month, with charges only going up from there.

There is however a warning about signal trade being used alone, without any other indicators, especially if you are only looking at indicators over a short period of time. This approach has been shown not to be the best one in making good profits. Instead when using this service you should use it in combination with other indicators. Even as an extra indicator to verify or compare against other indicators, Forex signal trade can work well in these situations. Of course you should also ask for a history of their data. This can help indicate their successes and any failures they may have had in predicting good buy and sell times, showing you which service is the best option for you. Or even if this service would be a good choice for you at all.

Of course a lot of the reasons that people choose to use a signal trading service or not is because it saves them the trouble of having to analyze trends on their own. Once again, you shouldn't use these services on their own, without other indicators. You should also make sure you tread very carefully until you are sure you can trust the company you are working with sufficiently. In the meantime, use other indicators, trust yourself and listen to the grapevine. Whether using the Forex market or another one, using any signal trade company or the Forex signal trading company in particular, in the end it is up to you how and when you decide to use them.

Ever since the invention of Forex software a lot more people around the world have been able to fully take advantage of the Forex market and trading. By using foreign exchange software, companies from around the globe are able to enter into trading with Forex online. The software also allows them to feel more secure in trading online any time of day or night without feeling that they will be cheated or manipulated. These software offers the advantages of convenience and security combined in one.

Forex software tends to be a lot more seamless and allows all traders of Forex around the world to know the Forex rate, number of trades happening and the volume of currency being traded from all around the globe. Foreign exchange software also allows for transparency and accountability to all parties involved, because of the uniform approach of how the software is produced and put together.

There are two options when it comes to choosing your FX software. One is online or server side software, while the other is called client side software. You can choose to use only one or to use both. Using both will help you by allowing you to be sure that the trade is conducted in real time online. It can also ensure you that everything is secure.

Forex software is known to help provide up to date and very accurate rates. The updates in themselves can assist in letting the trader know when to buy or sell and make general decisions in regards to their trades. Of course having the software available to you can make the exact amounts more accurate for every Forex trader around the world, so there is no discrepancy, which can result in the loss of huge amounts of money.

Security is another huge advantage of having Forex software. The way the software is programmed it is able to offer its users privacy and integrity when it comes to their private information. Another great security feature of FX software is the fact that it is encoded with protection against hackers who can set off major chaos if able to get into the inner workings of Forex trading. Another great feature of Forex software is its charting feature. This feature allows its users to track bigger and more general trends from all around the globe. By being able to see the bigger picture, better decisions can be made in regards to trading in the Forex market.

There is so much talk about NASDAQ and NYSE, but how many people are aware of another similar market, called Forex Markets? Forex Market has ten times the average daily turnover of many similar global equity markets. Also, foreign exchange markets have thirty the times of the daily volume of NASDAQ and NYSE. Markets are also the most liquid market in the world with one of the highest turnovers ever recorded, estimated at $2 trillion in one day.

Foreign exchange markets, also known as FX or the foreign exchange is actually a decentralized market, commonly known as an Interbank or interdealer market. One of the main duties of FX Markets is to trade. Foreign banks, currency dealers and different Forex investors use the facility as a type of trading post. They use it to exchange foreign currencies, from all over the world. Of course for this to work in the best way, it has no centralized location. This is because all business is conducted online. For a long time the main people that used Forex Markets were the banks. Recently though, FX Markets acquired the ability to leverage large positions with not very much available capital. This means that it is now a more liquid market and more easily accessible to smaller companies that would like to get involved as well.

From New Zealand, to Australia, to Asia, the Middle East, Europe and America, Forex Markets is open twenty-four hours a day. All the major markets, including London, New York, and Tokyo are part of it. Of course the United Kingdom and the United States account for over fifty percent of the turnover. When the time of day comes for all the major markets to overlap, trading can get pretty heavy.

Besides the major markets there are also five main currencies that are a part of Foreign exchange Markets. These currencies include the United States Dollar, the Euro, the Yen, the Franc and the British Pound. Each of these is traded in what are called pairs. In this particular market they are also called crosses, in what is known in the Forex Markets as the 'spot' market. A lot of this market is determined by supply and demand of certain major currencies and how they affect the current world market and its situations.

For those who have the money and the know how to survive on the world market, this market could be their best option. Being able to really read the current market and the world situation is definitely a plus when it comes to this market. If you have the need or the want to trade on the world market and are comfortable with what you know about it, Forex Markets are definitely the way to go

Online stock trading can be the most profitable or most 'cash sucking' form of investing you can ever get involved in. It all depends on how experienced you are, and how you approach it.

After all, there's the...

...absolutely positively essential 'US$15K US$20K starting capital'; the 'US$97 per month membership site fees'; the 'US$997 holy grail trading system'; the 'must attend' 'US$3,447 two-day trading seminar'; the 'US$150 per month live stock price feed subscription'; the 'exclusive limited edition US$40 per month 'insider tips' newsletter'; the 'US$77 per month ultra-fantastic charting service with the bonus 3,000 previously unknown technical indicators tossed in'...etc...etc...etc...blah, blah, blah.

...Isn't there?

Sadly, far too many first-time traders get sucked in by all the hyped up tips for online stock trading spun by money-grabbing internet marketers masquerading as expert online stock traders. These greed merchants cunningly relieve the unwitting newbies of every cent they own... and then justify it by saying that it's a 'small price to pay for the knowledge that'll make them rich!'

If you're a first-time online stock trader and you want to avoid falling into the same trap as so many before you, then this article on 'tips for online stock trading' is written for you. Please read on...

Here are three tips for online stock trading that'll save you over US$1,500 a year!

1) Find an online stock broker who doesn't require a minimum deposit. If you're a beginner at online stock trading, or you're on a tight budget, there's no need to set up a brokerage account with 'thousands of dollars' in starting capital.

Personally, I opened my first online stock trading account with just a hundred dollars! I decided that 'if I got it wrong a few times...too bad. It was my learning curve and the downside risk was no more than the cost of a good night out!'

I choose Sharebuilder (http://www.sharebuilder.com) for my online stock trading debut. Unlike most other trading firms, these folk allow you to nominate a DOLLAR AMOUNT as opposed to a SHARE AMOUNT when placing your order. For example, I opted to invest US$100 in high technology stock, Imation Corporation (Stock Symbol = IMC). I paid $37 a share and ended up with 2.594 shares (i.e. $37 x 2.594 = $96 + $4 brokerage = $100). The stock climbed to over US$51 a share before easing back to the low $40's. I took my profits at $49 a share and banked a 27% gain!

2) DON'T PAY for online stock trading information when you can get it for FREE. Why pay hundreds of dollars a year for so-called hot stock information when you can get it for free from either MSN.com or Big Charts.com? These two sites have so much online stock trading info and advice crammed into them you could spend a lifetime just reading it all!

For MSN.com, go to: http://moneycentral.msn.com/investor/home.asp and you'll discover more tips for online stock trading than you'll know what to do with! There are more than one hundred links per page covering every conceivable aspect of online stock trading. Market reports, IPO's, currency exchange rates, portfolio tracking facilities, EFT's, brokers, research tools, stock ratings, quotes, charts, company earnings, open streaming stock ticker, SEC filings, earnings estimates, analysts ratings, expert stock picks... the list is endless.

For BigCharts.com, go to: http://bigcharts.marketwatch.com and you'll find a whole new bunch of tips for online stock trading. While the site itself is not as large as MSN.com, the depth of free technical analysis and charting tools is, in my opinion, superior. The many articles and stock reports hosted on this site are also of a higher calibre. However BOTH these sites are invaluable sources of trading information and considering they provide free access to all the data you'll ever need, bookmark them NOW!!!

3) Profit from 'back door' companies. Instead of buying highly priced shares in mainstream companies whenever such companies announce a pending 'major product roll-out', why not do what the real professional traders do...'look for other, much lower priced stocks (such as raw component manufacturers and / or suppliers to the main company) which stand to benefit just as greatly from the impending product launch. Make a shortlist of these peripheral companies, and then buy shares in the one/s that offer the greatest potential leverage to the upside.

An example of this could be finding a small but publicly listed manufacturer that supplies components to a gaming console giant like Nintendo. While Nintendo doesn't offer much leverage at almost US$180 per share, the small peripheral supplier might be trading for just a few pennies on the OTC or NASDAQ. If the launch of Nintendo's 'Wii' later this year goes as well as some analysts expect it to, the associated OTC and NASDAQ stocks could literally 'go through the roof!'

Did you know that many of the tools and resources that we consider essential for online trading success are actually available for free - if you know where to look?

Online trading is taking the financial markets by storm as private investors are now able to quickly, easily and cheaply trade Forex, Commodities, Stocks and many other instruments. But what’s brought about this enormous increase in online trading?

Basically, the tools and information which were previously only available to the “big boys” – like stockbrokers, banks and institutional investors - are now available to you. These days, we don't have to rely on our broker for recommendations. With only a computer and internet connection, we can now find our own trades independently and without fear of bias.

People just like you and I can now trade with a level of sophistication that was unheard of, even in the 90’s! This has effectively ‘levelled the playing field’ and allowed home based traders to make highly informed investment decisions on their own.

Data feeds, software based trading systems, real-time quotes and interactive charts are all now available online at reasonable cost and yet, not so long ago, many of these resources cost thousands and thousands of Dollars. The point I’m making however, is that with a little investigation it’s now possible to find many of these invaluable tools absolutely free.

Andrew Fleming, author of “Free Online Trading Tools” has made it a personal quest to discover what’s available out there ‘just for the taking’ (legally, of course). He was amazed. Some sites he discovered will come of no surprise to you –Yahoo Finance, Bloomberg and Reuters etc. are the obvious ones and are all very comprehensive sources. But he also uncovered a wealth of sites that are a little more ‘off the beaten track’, but also incredibly useful to online traders.

As an example, Andrew found over 20 separate stock screening/charting programs that will crunch their way through years of data for you - then spit out identifiable trends and patterns that can be used to place profitable trades.

Many offer levels of functionality that you would normally only expect on $300-$400 software, like Fibonacci, Moving Averages, trend lines, Volume, etc. etc. You also tend to find with these ‘licence free’ programs that a community of users emerge who create their own profitable formulas and then make them accessible to others through forums and chat rooms.

Of course, without the knowledge to interpret the results from these programs, they’re practically worthless. But expensive trading seminars and courses are another area where many of us are often spending money that could be used for placing trades. Too often, newbies to the world of online trading are taken in by slick sales copy promising the ‘Holy Grail’ of trading systems - whereas in reality it simply doesn’t exist.

Any experienced trader will say that much of trading success is in finding or developing a simple set of rules and having the mental mettle to stick to them. But again, this is where the Internet comes to our rescue. Through his research, Andrew also uncovered a virtual ‘online university’ of trading information, offering many tried and tested methods from which to hone and adapt a personal system.

And even if the idea of finding your own trades is a little daunting, he also uncovered several free ‘stock pick’ sites and forums – at least a couple of which reported surprisingly good track records.

Whether you’re new to the world of online trading or not, before buying the next “must-have” trading guru’s system or software program, see what you can get for free first – then use the money to place a trade instead!

When becoming a Forex trader you can definitely use great tools available to you, such as Forex charting. The charts produced by Forex analysis can give you great insight into different aspects of the market, including movements. By using charts in foreign exchange you can study the behavior of the market over a greater amount of time and analyze them and how they affect trading.

By using Forex charts you will be better informed as to certain patterns and trends. This advantage can help in not making rushed decisions, but instead making a more careful and weighted decision, based on the charts that Forex analysis can provide you with. This in the end can have you end up with a better decision rather than one that was too rushed and hastily made.

There is certain specified charting software that Forex analysis uses. This software goes through historical as well as current information to predict future trends in trading, and therefore give the trader who uses Forex charting an edge. This software can also be customized to meet each user's specific needs. Some options in the charting software includes analyzing of prices based upon combinations of open, high, low or close points that have been taken and placed on the chart over a certain amount of time. While other options use only closing prices or base theirs on volume and open interests.

There are of course a few things to take into consideration when choosing the options you want for your Foreign exchange charting program. You can look up the different options online. The things you must look at when deciding on the right charting program for you include, making sure the charts are up to the minute and accurate, are meaningful and have significant information at first glance, that they integrate with the trading platform the trader uses and that you are able to use the software to view more than one at a time in order to get as full a picture as possible. Fully researching the different options in Forex tabulation can definitely help you in finding the correct combination or combinations that are right for you and your needs.

As you can see using charting can be an invaluable tool when trading on the Forex market. When properly prepared and researched, you can find the right options in charting to suit your needs. This than can make Forex charting the answer to many problems you may be having in trading, and instead make your profits soar.