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Leverage
The low margin requirements in the forex markets make everyone’s what-if analysis yield forecasts with 1000% growth annually. What those forecasts fail to account for is the multiplying effect of leverage during periods of consecutive losses.
What’s the ultimate worst case scenario? Consecutive losses. Knowing how many consecutive losses your system is likely to sustain is the key to capital conservation. Examples of leverage: 1:1 = one $100K contract per $100K in capital. 20:1 = 20 $100K contracts per $100K in capital.
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Convenience
The fact that you need to go to bed or spend time with your family does not stop the forex markets from operating. In other markets you can trade a specific window that usually lasts 6-10 hours, which is physically manageable. Forex, on the other hand, demands 24 hour monitoring. That can be accomplished through automated trading systems or, less optimally, through pre-set stop and limit orders or physical monitoring of a trade.
Cost
“No commission trading” is a marketing slogan many dealers offer as a perceived benefit of forex. But the fact that there is no commission does not change the high level of transaction costs paid to dealers through the bid-ask spread.
There is no doubt that the liquidity, leverage, convenience, and transaction costs found in the forex markets are great tools for investors – but not always. Just as easily as these tools can be used for wealth creation, they can be misused for wealth destruction. The novice investor destroys wealth, and the sophisticated investor creates it.
The low margin requirements in the forex markets make everyone’s what-if analysis yield forecasts with 1000% growth annually. What those forecasts fail to account for is the multiplying effect of leverage during periods of consecutive losses.
What’s the ultimate worst case scenario? Consecutive losses. Knowing how many consecutive losses your system is likely to sustain is the key to capital conservation. Examples of leverage: 1:1 = one $100K contract per $100K in capital. 20:1 = 20 $100K contracts per $100K in capital.
[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]
Convenience
The fact that you need to go to bed or spend time with your family does not stop the forex markets from operating. In other markets you can trade a specific window that usually lasts 6-10 hours, which is physically manageable. Forex, on the other hand, demands 24 hour monitoring. That can be accomplished through automated trading systems or, less optimally, through pre-set stop and limit orders or physical monitoring of a trade.
Cost
“No commission trading” is a marketing slogan many dealers offer as a perceived benefit of forex. But the fact that there is no commission does not change the high level of transaction costs paid to dealers through the bid-ask spread.
There is no doubt that the liquidity, leverage, convenience, and transaction costs found in the forex markets are great tools for investors – but not always. Just as easily as these tools can be used for wealth creation, they can be misused for wealth destruction. The novice investor destroys wealth, and the sophisticated investor creates it.
