Cent & Sensibilities

EPISODE 6 - Money, Money, Money: Forex Trading

Three trillions dollars are traded every 24 hours on the foreign exchange market - which is the same size as the entire gross domestic product of China for one year - or ten times the size of the combined daily turnover on all the world's equity markets.

We talk to a Professor at Singapore Management University and currency experts at leading international banks to find out how the foreign exchange market got so big and what you should keep in mind if you want to get a slice of the action.

Curious about forex trading but no clue how to get started? Well, Saxo Capital Markets created the SaxoTrader -an innovative online-trading platform that allows people to try their hand at foreign currency trading. If you are new to trading forex or just interested in how forex trading works, the SaxoTrader is just the instrument for you. Lin spoke to a Saxo trader who gave her a first-hand look at how trading currencies actually works.

Grace says she's even taking the leap and taking her trading on the road. After several years of trading from home – she's packing her bags for a year - and traveling round the world while still trading.

BUY SELL HOLD SEGMENT

Foreign exchange trading used to be the domain of the big boys - big banks and financial institutions. But inexpensive online trading platforms has opened the forex market up to retail investors who trade from the comfort of home.

We spoke to two independent forex traders – Grace Cheng and Nicholas Tan for their tips on how to get started.

You can track how she's doing on her webcasts. You can also check out her book – “7 winning strategies for Trading Forex” published by Harriman. Nicholas, who used to work for a large local bank in Singapore , now trades for himself.

He spends four hours a day forex trading in the evenings, in addition to trading in stocks during the day. He argues there are good reasons to get into forex trading as retail investor – if you do it wisely. Nicholas both teaches a course on the subject, as well as having written “A Handbook on Forex Trading”.