Currency trading, also known as foreign exchange trading. involves the sale and purchase of currencies of nations in the Forex market with the aim of generating profits. The extent of profits that an investor is able to generate through each trading order is usually dependent on several factors, some of which are trading style, technique and luck.

Currency Trading: Various Styles

While carrying out Forex trading on the Internet, you can pursue any of the following currency trading methods. The type of method you choose to follow would depend largely on the specific profit target and time on hand.

Scalping

It’s a trading style in which investors trade frequently over the span of a day and rarely let any one position remain open for more than a minute. Since the time interval between the opening and closing of an order is usually less than a minute, scalping is also termed as quick trading. Scalping is usually aimed at making small profits (usually 4-15 pips ) from every position. This type of trading requires a deep understanding of the Forex market and, hence, novice players should ideally refrain from using this trading type.

Day Trading

In this trading style, investors close their Forex positions on the same trading day as when they were initiated. A trading day generally ends at 5 p.m. New York time. Traders following the day trading style aim at making at least 15-100 pips of profit through each position. This trading style is followed by almost all online currency traders who typically use technical analysis. which involves the study of chart patterns. support and resistance levels and economic indicators. to set up their trades.

Swing Trading

Investors looking to generate profits in the range of 100-250 pips opt for the swing trading style. In this style, traders let their positions stand for two to five days and sell at the best opportunity. Traders using the swing style tend to use technical analysis before setting up a position.

Position Trading/ Long-Term Trading

This trading style is generally followed by traders who have in-depth knowledge of fundamentals and economics. Moreover, you need to ignore the inevitable ups and downs in the market for months or even years to take up this trading style. Long-term trading is usually aimed at generating more than 200 pips of profit per trade. Traders using this trading style tend to use both technical and fundamental analysis before setting up a position.

Economic Data Economic data of a country, such as gross domestic product (GDP), industrial production (IP), consumer price index (CPI), unemployment numbers, Manufacturing Index of the Institute for Supply Management (ISM), retail sales, international trade and housing statistics, directly impacts the value of the currency. This data is regularly released by a government or a private organization that keeps track of these economic performances. This economic data reflects a country’s economic health. If a country’s economy is on the downswing, the value of its currency is most likely to fall vis-à-vis the currencies of other nations.

Automated Trading In this trading style, a trader utilizes a pre-programmed strategy to place Forex orders through an automated software program. These strategies are based on technical and/or fundamental analysis. This style does not rely on human decision making capability.

Range Trading This trading style involves a trader identifying a price range within which a currency pair usually trades. With this range in mind, the trader then opens his/her position at a lower level and closes it when the upper price level is achieved. When an investor trades this style, s/he is aware of the profits that can be made from the specific position. This style should only be followed by experts who understand the market well.

News Trading When you open a position on the basis of news that could impact a currency’s value, you would be using the news trading style. This trading style is aimed at making short-term profits from the ripple effect of the news.

You can adopt for any of the trading styles, based on your requirements and comfort level in the Forex market. easy-forex offers an online trade facility that enables traders to easily participate in currency trading.