Archives: 2008 December

Years ago, the forex market was available only to long-term investors, banks and people who had great capitals. The trading transactions were made through an agent or voice broker who kept the clients informed on what was happening. Later on, this method was replaced by computerized automated systems. This was the early form of a forex trading strategy.

A forex trading strategy has two main elements:

1) Technical Analysis.

The technical analysis is based on charts and it observes the market movements using a mathematical formula. The traders learn about announcements and news on economics that may impact the forex markets. Its fundamental side is helpful in proper identification of what should be done and what should not.

The technical analysis is helpful in determining the areas of resistance and support due to its use of chart indicators. It reveals where the price reverses, where it stops or where it has no change. A preferred method to calculate the levels of resistance and support due to its accuracy is Fibonacci, which is a sequential number form and its proportions are found in nature such as sunflower seeds, and pineapple rinds.

The meaning of cheap stock, that is, stocks that they are trading under 60 cents or below, are always enticing – because you put down a small amount of money for a potentially lucrative return. It also looks good because with your investment you are getting a lot more shares, or contracts for you amount invested.

However, for many investors, this scenario is just a pipe dream to buy that stock at 10 cents and see it go to $10. Does happen but not very often and it can be very costly. Sometimes they are cheap for a great reason, they are NO GOOD

So what are the downfalls to cheap stocks?

How can you identify if they are cheap These cheaper stocks can also be categorized by their market capitalisation (that is, the total number of shares multiplied by the price per share). Which is the total value of the company If a company’s market cap is less than $100 million, the company is considered a fairly small stock, or a “small cap stock”.

So is bigger better, or are small Fish sweeter, Will they grow? Historically, small cap stocks have outperformed large cap stocks in terms of returns. However this is not always the case and you have to remember the saying risk versus return. This isn’t because a lot of cheap, small companies are better investments than large companies, but because almost all big companies were small when they first sold stock. Everything normally starts out small. Microsoft started in a garage, and now they are one of the biggest company in the world. Most large companies are through growing or are just fighting for market share.

Knowing what your risk tolerance and investment style are will help you choose investments more wisely. While there are many different types of investments that one can make, there are really only three specific investment styles – and those three styles tie in with your risk tolerance. The three investment styles are conservative, moderate, and aggressive.

Naturally, if you find that you have a low tolerance for risk, your investment style will most likely be conservative or moderate at best. If you have a high tolerance for risk, you will most likely be a moderate or aggressive investor. At the same time, your financial goals will also determine what style of investing you use.

If you are saving for retirement in your early twenties, you should use a conservative or moderate style of investing – but if you are trying to get together the funds to buy a home in the next year or two, you would want to use an aggressive style.

Conservative investors want to maintain their initial investment. In other words, if they invest $5000 they want to be sure that they will get their initial $5000 back. This type of investor usually invests in common stocks and bonds and short term money market accounts.

Many moderate investors invest 50% of their investment funds in safe or conservative investments, and invest the remainder in riskier investments. A moderate investor usually invests much like a conservative investor, but will use a portion of their investment funds for higher risk investments.