Are you ready to trade the forex markets? Before you bet any of your hard-earned capital, you should learn how to trade using several methodologies.  The markets provide a real-time nonstop place to generate income, but if you don’t know what you are doing, you are bound to lose money. Trading is a business, and like all businesses, you need to have a plan which describes how you will make money and the risk you are willing to assume.

How to Start to Learn to Trade

One of the best ways to learn how to trade is to perform some due diligence and find a web site which provides educational material on trading. Some of the more reputable forex brokers offer educational material that is in video format. If you find that you learn at a more efficient rate by reading through material, there are thousands of articles on trading.

The process of trading is taking risk, in a specific asset, where the amount of capital you make is more than you lose over time.  Before you start, try using a demonstration account to see if you can make money on paper before you risk your capital.  A demonstration account allows you to test drive a forex platform, with demonstration capital.  You should do this for a while, as it will help you reduce the urge to trade which occurs when you initially start.  If you begin to treat trading like gambling where you are leaving  your success up to luck, then you are bound to lose money.

Types of Analysis

There are many types of analysis that you can use to determine the future direction of a currency pair.  The most common are technical and fundamental analysis. Several traders use a combination of both to help them determine the future direction of a market.

Fundamental Analysis

This type of analysis is based in the valuation of a currency pair based on macro events and interest rate levels.  Fundamental analysts follow economic releases. These reports can change the value of a currency pair immediately.  A financial calendar is a tool that helps you follow economic releases. It is a real-time report that shows you current releases as well as what is expected to be released in the future.  Traders generally evaluate what happened relative to what was expected to occur to drive their trading decisions.

Technical Analysis

This type of analysis is based on price movements. A technical analysis believes that all the current available information is incorporate into the current price. By studying patterns, and statistics and support and resistance you can formulate an opinion about future prices.  You can use a combination of trend lines, moving average and momentum to drive studies that will help you enter and exit a currency pair.

Summary

Learning how to trade is a process. Before you risk your capital, you should view educational information which can teach you how to trade.  You should learn about both fundamental and technical analysis and use a demonstration account to test out your theories before you risk your own money.