So You Want to Trade Forex Online?

One of the largest complaints American tourists have when visiting Europe is the high costs of everyday items from bottles of Coke to hotel rooms.

However, Americans visiting Europe this summer will find items a little bit cheaper because of the drastic shift in the exchange rates, and not businesses lowering their prices.

During the summer 2014 months American tourists were able to exchange one American dollar for 0.75 Euros.  By summer 2015, American tourists could exchange the same American dollar but receive 0.88 Euros in exchange.

What happened?

All major currencies trade on the foreign exchange market.  The exchange market assists international trade, investments and tourisms by enabling the conversion of one currency to the other.  Fluctuations in the foreign exchange market result in changes in exchange rates.

The top eight most widely traded currencies in the world include the U.S. Dollar, Euro, Japanese Yen, Great British Pound, Swiss Franc, Canadian Dollar, Australian / New Zealand Dollar and the South African Rand.

Returning to our discussion of an American tourist visiting Europe for a vacation.  Suppose the tourist began planning his 2015 trip in 2014 and acquired 1,000 Euros it would have cost him around $1,250.  If the tourist would have waited until summer 2015, the same 1,000 Euros would have cost $1,100.

Many economists and foreign exchange experts are now predicting the Euro will reach parity with the U.S. Dollar.

How Did That Happen?

In simple terms, demand for a currency determines its values.  As we have seen in the news headlines throughout the year, various European nations (most of which use the same centralized currency, the Euro) were facing difficult economic periods.

Greece’s economic future remains a large concern as the country is stepping up efforts to reach an accord with its creditors in time to avoid a default.  Productivity and labor concerns out of Germany and France also remain a concern.

With that said, investors, banks and financial institutions (such as hedge funds) realize there is a higher degree of uncertainty within Europe than there was a year ago.  As such, demand for the Euro has fallen while demand for the U.S. Dollar has risen as it is viewed as a safer currency to hold.

Naturally, other factors that determine a foreign exchange rate include the country’s GDP outlook, pricing changes in a major commodity export (such as oil, gold, or even coffee), political stability, among others.

You Don’t Need To Be A Tourist To Exchange Money

Converting one currency to another is most certainly not limited to travelers.  In fact, millions of individuals make a living by taking advantage of fluctuations in exchange markets through online trading.

Most financial intuitions offer their clients access to trade in the foreign exchange market.  If your bank does not offer access, there are many online brokers that offer online forex trading.

Setting up a foreign exchange account is straightforward and many companies offer sign-up bonuses or other incentives.

Once a foreign exchange account is set up and properly funded, the user now has access to buy and sell virtually every global currency.

Investors could make use of the foreign exchange market to supplement their already existing investments in the stock market.  On the other hand, a basket of multiple currencies offers investors a diversified investment tool.
As an example, investors who want to bet on the price of oil rising could consider buying a combination of oil-related currencies such as the Canadian Dollar or Mexican Peso.

Approximately $3 trillion worth of currencies change hands on a daily basis, making it the largest trading market in the world.  As such, the exchange is considered to be very liquid (that is every buyer is likely to find a seller and vice versa) and lucrative for day traders that seek to repeat small gains over and over again.  Naturally, investing in foreign exchange isn’t without risks that need to be fully understood before investing and trading.

source: everybodylovesyourmoney.com

PSEi closes above 7,900 level for the first time

MANILA, Philippines -- The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) extended its rally, ending closer to the 8,000 level it hit in early Monday trading.

Big gainers were led by Ayala Land and Jollibee Foods Corp., which both rose more than 2 percent.

SM Prime Holdings Inc. and Aboitiz Power Corp. also surged.

Overall, the main index closed at 7,940.49, up 0.52 percent. This was the first time the PSEi closed above the 7,900 level, and also surpassed Monday's record close of 7,899.41.

The PSEi joined most other Asian markets, which closed at their best quarter since 2012.

Investors bet the Fed will raise interest rates later than expected, while China ramped up stimulus and oil continued to fall.

"The PSEi managed to extend its gains for a fifth straight day on positive news coming out of US, Europe, and China. We are optimistic that the continuous flow of good news locally and from overseas will provide basis for the sustained growth of not only the index but overall market activity," PSE President and CEO Hans B. Sicat said.

The PSEi has had 23 record finishes and 17 intraday record highs since the start of 2015.

At the foreign exchange market, the peso strengthened to P44.70 against the US dollar. - With ANC

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

PSEi ends 3-day winning streak; shares of Manila Water slump

MANILA, Philippines - Philippine shares snapped a three-day winning streak, succumbing to a regional downturn after China cut its 2015 growth target.

China on Thursday said it is aiming to grow its economy by 7 percent this year, below 2014's 7.5 percent goal. This is the country's lowest target in 15 years.

The PSE index fell nearly 0.4 percent to close at 7,819.04.

One of the day's biggest losers was Manila Water, whose shares plunged to as much as 13.3 percent. Manila Water shares closed 10 percent lower at P26.80.

Analysts say Manila Water, partly owned by Ayala Corp., was hit by market speculation that it lost an arbitration case for a rate hike petition.

Manila Water spokesperson Jeric Sevilla said no decision has been issued on the arbitration case.

The news also caused worries for Maynilad's own rate hike. Maynilad's owners Metro Pacific Investments and DMCI Holdings also traded lower.

At the foreign exchange market, the peso weakened to P44.12 against the US dollar.

HK, Shanghai down on China target

Meanwhile, Hong Kong and Shanghai markets sank in Asian trade Thursday after China set tepid 2015 economic and trade growth targets, while the euro fell to 11-year lows ahead of a key European Central Bank meeting.

Wall Street provided a negative lead again despite an upbeat report on the state of the US economy and another round of healthy private-sector jobs growth.

Hong Kong sank 1.11 percent, or 272.43 points to 24,193.04 and Shanghai lost 0.95 percent, or 31.05 points, to 3,248.48.

Sydney ended flat, edging up 2.57 points to 5,904.16 and Seoul was also virtually unchanged, nudging up 0.09 points to 1,998.38. Tokyo added 0.26 percent, or 48.24 points, to close at 18,751.84.

China's National People's Congress, the rubber-stamp legislature, opened with Premier Li Keqiang setting a growth target for this year of "approximately seven percent", which would be the slowest in 25 years.

The goal, which comes after a 7.4 percent rise in 2014, also comes as authorities look to set the world's number two economy on a more sustainable path after decades of breakneck growth.

Authorities also cut their trade growth target for this year to "around six percent" after missing its 7.5 percent goal in 2014 for the third consecutive year.

Over the past several months a slew of data has indicated a slowdown in the economy, including on manufacturing, inflation and trade.

In a work report, Li said China had been hit as the global economy faced headwinds, adding: "Downward pressure on China's economy has continued to mount, and we have faced an array of interwoven difficulties and challenges."

Traders seemed to be unimpressed with news that China will link up the Shenzhen and Hong Kong stock exchanges on a trial basis as part of its financial sector reform. However, Shenzhen's composite index rose 0.27 percent, or 4.53 points, to 1,677.77.

The move follows a similar scheme between Hong Kong and Shanghai that started in November. However, while officials trumpeted that as opening up China's closeted stock markets to the outside world, it has met with tepid demand in both cities.

Dollar-euro parity tipped

Regional investors are also keeping an eye on Europe, where the ECB will outline details of its bond-buying programme -- known as quantitative easing (QE) -- which is aimed at kickstarting the eurozone economy and fending off deflation.

The euro has suffered heavy selling as bank president Mario Draghi prepares to unveil the plan for the 60-billion-euros-a-month scheme.

The single currency fell at one point to $1.1028 Thursday, its lowest level since September 2003, before recovering marginally to $1.1058. That compared with $1.1080 late Wednesday in New York.

It was also at 132.44 yen compared with 132.63 yen in New York and much lower than 133.68 yen earlier Wednesday in Asia.

"The combination of deposit rates negative and QE is a very potent one, so it's very euro negative," Robin Brooks, chief currency strategist at Goldman Sachs, told Bloomberg news in Sydney.

"We have in our forecasts a very pronounced euro downswing, which is probably the most dollar-bullish forecast in all of our forecasts."

He added that the bank saw the dollar-euro reaching parity by the end of next year before the single currency falls further to 90 US cents by the end of 2017.

The dollar fetched 119.83 yen against 119.70 yen in US trade.

US markets ended lower for a second-straight session as dealers brushed off the Federal Reserve report showing the economy expanding moderately while payrolls company ADP said private firms hired more than 200,000 in February.

The Dow fell 0.58 percent, the S&P 500 lost 0.44 percent and the Nasdaq eased 0.26 percent.

On oil markets US benchmark West Texas Intermediate for April delivery was up 12 cents to $51.65 and Brent crude for April down 21 cents at $60.34.

Gold fetched $1,201.68 against $1,204.12 late Wednesday. - With reports from ANC, Reuters and Agence France-Presse

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com