Good time management for Forex traders
Forex traders often find themselves quite pressed for time whilst trading. It is all too common for traders, especially those who are new to Forex, to end up spending too much time on their trades at the expense of everything else. Sometimes, realising that even the most seasoned traders take time to live a normal life is just what you need to get back on track.
Many traders spend too much time watching charts in the hopes that something will change dramatically during that time. In reality, this technique sets many back because it causes them to focus too much on the possibility of failure. Conducting research prior to a trade is always a good idea, but this, too, can get out of control. If a solid plan for conducting trades isn't in place, no amount of obsession over current trends or expert advice will correct it.
There are many different advantages to having a working plan for your trading. Organisation is one of the major advantages, but a solid plan will also help you manage your time more efficiently. Remembering the fact that successful people generally have a plan will in turn help you stay focused.
When you have a good plan for managing your trades, you will have more freedom to do other things and feel less confined by your trading activities. You will be able to focus more on the meaningful parts of the trading process and less on worrying about the minor things.
Overdrafts as a form of business finance
Overdrafts are a form of credit provided by banks for their account holders. For businesses an overdraft facility can be used to help them make such things as one-off purchases. Ideally an enterprise securing a bank overdraft should be able to pay it off as quickly as possible.
Just as with business loans, a business with an overdraft will have to pay interest. But unlike a loan, which is usually payable over a pre-set period, interest is paid only while the account is overdrawn and on the amount outstanding.
Before arranging an overdraft facility, the company will need to have a business account with the particular bank. Generally there are two forms of overdraft facility available. There is the formal overdraft where the business will set it up with the bank in advance. Depending on the bank, the agreement can run for a set period, such as for up to 12-months. The business owner may have to pay an arrangement fee when the formal overdraft is agreed, and again when it is renewed.
Sometimes enterprises overdraw on their business accounts without telling their bank first. This is known as an informal overdraft and the bank may charge a fee each working day the account remains overdrawn as well as interest. If this is likely to happen frequently then the best advice is for the business to try and arrange a formal overdraft.
Overdrafts are recommended as only a short-term form of credit. They are, however, flexible and arrangement is usually very quick. As soon as the overdraft is cleared interest payments stop.
On the downside, the bank does have the right to ask for the overdraft to be cleared on demand, which could cause problems if an enterprise is having cash flow problems. There are also extra charges should a business exceed its overdraft limit.
Choosing the best FX currency pair to trade
Once a trader has traded on a demo account for some time and it becomes time to trade with real money, such a trader has to decide which currency pair(s) to trade in. Although this is largely a matter of personal preference, a few guidelines might aid the decision.
Volatility
As a general rule, the more volatile a currency is, the harder it becomes to predict its future movements and hence to trade it profitably. In this regard it might be a better solution to concentrate on the bigger currency pairs, such as the USD/GBP and the USD/EURO, than on currency pairs involving developing currencies such as the Indian rupee. This rule is not, of course, set in stone - third world currencies often present unequalled opportunities for the more experienced trader.
Patterns
Certain currency pairs tend to display fairly easily discernible patterns over time. The AUD, for example, has been appreciating fairly steadily against the USD over the past decade – forming an excellent longer term trading opportunity. This is where the trader’s timeframe plays an important role. Traders with a longer trading horizon can make use of such longer term trends, while short-term traders have to concentrate on opportunities that arise during brief market fluctuations. As a rule, these are much more difficult to predict.
Certain currencies are directly influenced by commodity prices. The Canadian dollar is an example here. Canada is a major oil exporter, and a drop or increase in the price of oil can serve as a leading indicator for the USD/CAD exchange rate. This presents great opportunities for astute traders.
Liquidity
You will never have a problem with liquidity with major currency pairs such as the EURO/USD. If you trade in obscure third world currencies, liquidity might sometimes become a problem.
Whichever currency pair you decide to trade in, a service such as tradestream could prove to be invaluable.
Studying for a job in Economics
If, like many people you follow the news including the financial and business sections then a career in economics might just be for you. Economics isn’t just about money, it’s about understanding a range of subjects they have an impact on the economy including political, sociological, geological and historical issues.
Studying economics at university can lead to a job in many areas of the financial and managerial sectors including banking, accountancy, trading and auditing. Other career paths that economics can help in include positions in marketing, management and sales roles.
While economics does not focus solely on number-crunching, reading charts or spreadsheets, students will have to have an aptitude for both mathematics and information technology. Problem solving and an understanding of currents affairs throughout the world are also good traits to have.
Throughout an economics degree, the student will learn a wide range of skills, opening up a wide range of career prospects (as mentioned above); some of the skills taught include:
• Analysing complex data and forming conclusions based on them
• Creating and presenting arguments
• Approaching issues from multiple angles, including the use of computer software
• Strong numeracy skills
• Strong IT skills
• Strong research skills
• Problem solving
• Planning and meeting deadlines
• Self-management skills
• A good understanding of current affairs
Some students even go on to consultancy roles giving advice to banks, large business or even government agencies, while some use the knowledge gained to start their own business.
For more information on economics or to see some economics coursework examples click here.
Business finance and grants
Grants are available for many types of businesses and projects, and can be a welcome source of income for a new or expanding business. Grants can be applied for from the government, EU, local councils and even charities so it’s a good idea to have a look around and see what’s out there.
One of the main advantages of grants is that unlike a loan you don’t have to pay the money back or the interest associated with it, but because of this competition is fierce for grants so you will won’t to work on your plan or project to make it stand out.
Advantages of grants include:
• You don’t have to pay a grant back.
• You don’t lose any control of your business.
Disadvantages of grants include:
• Finding the right type of grant for your business can be tough.
• There is a lot of competition for grants.
• Grants are normally awarded to planned projects and not those which have already started.
• Applying for grants can be time consuming.
Should traders use a forex robot?
Most forex robots are built around the Metatrader platform, which was specifically developed for trading futures, options and forex. The key role of a forex robot is to help traders automate specific actions. This tool is appropriate for running mechanical forex strategies that occur without human intervention.
How to use a robot
A quick search of the internet will reveal a wide selection of forex robots. Before downloading a specific product, the trader should check the reputation of the company selling the software. This is important, because many companies that spring up overnight propose incredible deals only to disappear within a matter of weeks. If possible, use a selection of robots, for a trial period, on a demo account. Having located a reliable company, the individual simply has to purchase and download the product. As soon as the software is installed it is ready for use.
To begin, the trader should open the robot, drag it to a chart, click ‘Allow Live Trading’ and activate the software by going to the ‘Expert Advisors’ section. The robot will then start to perform a variety of online currency trading activities right away.
Top advantages of using a robot
A trader who uses a robot correctly can often achieve great results. This is because the robot trades according to pre-set rules, even when the investor is not around. Additionally, it is able to perform objective online trades that are more effective than many subjective activities completed by human traders.
Another benefit of using a robot relates to the forex trading signal. Multiple forex platforms are ready to buy these signals and sell them to their subscribers. This can help the trader maximise the performance of his or her robot.
A trader will only become successful if his or her robot delivers profits most of the time. Unfortunately, there are many poor-quality forex robots around, which prevent traders from achieving the results they should.
National minimum wage up
To add further to the cost of business the National Minimum Wage goes by 12p an hour on the 1st October 2013 to the new rate of £6.31. The rate for 18-to-20-year-olds is increasing by 5p to £5.03 an hour, while it is going up by 4p to £3.72 for the 16-to-17-year-old age group.
The increase has been known for some time having been first announced in April of this year, following the recommendations of the independent Low Pay Commission. Employers will have time since the first announcement to take the increase into consideration in their costing, but it is hardly good news for hard pressed small and medium enterprises.
It is unlikely that this will be the rate for very long, if the campaigners for a living wage can influence government, they argue that arguing the minimum wage does not reflect the real costs of living, particularly in London where £8.55 should be the rate with £7.45 an hour in the UK as a whole.
The National Minimum wage first came onto the statute book on April 1st 1999 and was set at £3.60 an hour and workers under the age of 22 £3 an hour.
Has your company embraced the digital revolution?
It is surprising that although most, if not all business today has a website, most do not use to increase sales or profitability in their enterprise. In a report that has been released by O2 business, they produced a statistic the suggested that a quarter of consumers said they would not do business with a company that didn’t have a website. Well we do not find this in any way surprising, but do you use yours to its full potential to convert visitors to your website into customers?
How about social media engagement for instance, it’s not new business has been doing it for hundreds of years, but in the form of local newspaper advertisements, possibly pamphlet distribution or sponsoring events or entertaining. Remember that social media can be really useful for your business it enables you to talk to, and build a relationship with customers, importantly it has a positive impact on the volume of hits that you can get from the search engines.
Do not be afraid to use Twitter or Facebook to drive customers to your company website, it can be the ticket to increasing enquiries and sales, letting customers converse with your business freely, via social media channels, will reap dividends and although it can be time consuming, so can many other forms of selling your product. Embrace the digital age and use it to get customers worldwide to your website and buy your product or service.
How to find the best forex broker
Most investors are aware of the fact that having a really good forex broker will help them succeed in the forex market and make consistent profits. However, finding the best forex broker can be difficult. Today, there are literally hundreds of brokers offering their services on the internet.
Locating a good broker
A novice trader, looking for someone to help him or her start trading will find many a forex brokerage promising effortless and inexpensive forex currency trading accounts. Although most of them are legitimate, some will be fraudulent.
To avoid falling victim to scams, the first thing a newcomer to the forex market should do is contact the Financial Services Authority (FSA). Monitoring forex brokerage firms and individual brokers, this institution provides critical information about its members, including contact details, reviews, complaints and disciplinary actions. In fact, a trader looking for a reputable broker should be aware that all brokerages and professional brokers must be authorised by the FSA in order to perform specific forex trading tasks.
Investors who already trade in other markets should ask their current brokers if they have any experience with forex. If they do not, they may recommend a fellow broker who has a good reputation. The investor should always be sure that the prospective broker really does know how to trade forex. This can be done by simply asking for references from existing clients or looking for feedback on one of the forex forums.
Since the relationship with a broker involves constant contact and financial commitment, investors should never take the decision of hiring a broker lightly. Failure to do so may result in serious repercussions, such as becoming the victim of a scam. In conclusion, if a broker does not have FSA authorisation the investor should look for an alternative service provider.
Invoice financing for business
Waiting for invoices to be paid can put a strain on businesses. However, those invoices can be used to secure finance without having to resort to loans or overdrafts. This is done through invoice financing.
There are two kinds of invoice financing; invoice factoring and invoice discounting. With both, an invoice financier buys the debt and forwards up to 85% against the value of the invoices. The balance, less any fees and interest, is paid once the clients have settled their invoices.
With invoice factoring it is the invoice financier who is responsible for pursuing and collecting payment from clients for the unpaid invoices. While this will save businesses a lot of time and trouble, their clients will know that a third party – in this case the invoice financier – has been used to collect the debt. This in turn could harm the reputation of companies using invoice factoring. This can be avoided by using invoice discounting.
Invoice discounting operates in a similar fashion to factoring, with a percentage of the value of the invoices paid by the invoice financier upfront and the balance paid when they have been settled. However, it is the business which issued the invoices which are responsible for securing payment and forwarding them to the financier. This means that the client owing payment need never know that an invoice financier has been used.
Companies wanting to use invoice financing should be aware that most invoice financiers deal with only commercial invoices. This means that those who provide goods and services for the public may not be able to use this form of finance.