The diamond invention—the creation of the idea that diamonds are rare and valuable, and are essential signs of esteem—is a relatively recent development in the history of the diamond trade. Until the late nineteenth century, diamonds were found only in a few riverbeds in India and in the jungles of Brazil, and the entire world production of gem diamonds amounted to a few pounds a year. In 1870, however, huge diamond mines were discovered near the Orange River, in South Africa, where diamonds were soon being scooped out by the ton. Suddenly, the market was deluged with diamonds. The British financiers who had organized the South African mines quickly realized that their investment was endangered; diamonds had little intrinsic value—and their price depended almost entirely on their scarcity. The financiers feared that when new mines were developed in South Africa, diamonds would become at best only semiprecious gems.
The major investors in the diamond mines realized that they had no alternative but to merge their interests into a single entity that would be powerful enough to control production and perpetuate the illusion of scarcity of diamonds. The instrument they created, in 1888, was called De Beers Consolidated Mines, Ltd., incorporated in South Africa. As De Beers took control of all aspects of the world diamond trade, it assumed many forms. In London, it operated under the innocuous name of the Diamond Trading Company. In Israel, it was known as "The Syndicate." In Europe, it was called the "C.S.O." -- initials referring to the Central Selling Organization, which was an arm of the Diamond Trading Company. And in black Africa, it disguised its South African origins under subsidiaries with names like Diamond Development Corporation and Mining Services, Inc. At its height -- for most of this century -- it not only either directly owned or controlled all the diamond mines in southern Africa but also owned diamond trading companies in England, Portugal, Israel, Belgium, Holland, and Switzerland.
Monday, December 12, 2011
Early History
The first recorded history of the diamond dates back some 3,000 years to India, where it is likely that diamonds were first valued for their ability to refract light. In those days, the diamond was used in two ways-for decorative purposes, and as a talisman to ward off evil or provide protection in battle.
Sunday, December 11, 2011
HISTORY OF DIAMONDS
From myths about valleys of diamonds protected by snakes, to the production of millions of carats in rough diamonds each year, the history of diamonds is one of mystical power, beauty and commercial expertise.
Factors To Consider When Looking At Silver Price
If you are looking to invest in silver, then the first thing to keep in mind is that it carries the same potential rewards and risks as any other type of investment. At the same token, by having a good understanding of the Silver Price, this commodity can be used as a hedge against any type of financial stress. In order to ensure that you do have a good understanding of the Silver Price, there are a few points that you should consider. First of all, it will largely depend on the type of silver you purchase. For example, it is possible to buy silver coins, rounds, bars, as well as to invest in silver mining companies and silver exchange traded funds.
The first thing to keep in mind is that the price of silver can vary greatly when you compare each of these methods of buying silver. The reason for this is because other factors such as premiums and shipping costs come in to play as well. For example, if you decide to buy silver coins or rounds, then you will most likely have to pay for premiums as well, and these premiums can at times be very expensive. Therefore, the Silver Price will not only be dependent on the spot price, but also on the amount of premiums you pay. In order to make the best from this type of investment, it means that you have to have a good understanding of the value of these coins, otherwise you can find yourself losing a lot of money in the long run. If on the other hand you invest in silver bars, you will still have to pay premiums, but the premiums that you pay on these bars are generally far less than that of coins. Either way, it is still a good idea to keep a close eye on those premiums, because that will be an extra factor to consider when looking at the Silver Price. If on the other hand you do not wish to actually own silver, you might want to look at silver exchange traded funds or investing in silver mining companies.
By taking this route, you have to keep in mind that silver exchange traded funds and silver mining companies are not actual investments in silver, but rather, in the actual mining company or unit that comes from the exchange traded funds. These types of investments will be affected by Silver Rate, but they can also be affected by other factors, and so it is important to do a good amount of research before utilizing these two methods of investing indirectly in silver. In the end, you will be choosing a commodity that can be used as a way to hedge against poor economic conditions, but you still have to make sure that you know what you are doing to get the right results.
The first thing to keep in mind is that the price of silver can vary greatly when you compare each of these methods of buying silver. The reason for this is because other factors such as premiums and shipping costs come in to play as well. For example, if you decide to buy silver coins or rounds, then you will most likely have to pay for premiums as well, and these premiums can at times be very expensive. Therefore, the Silver Price will not only be dependent on the spot price, but also on the amount of premiums you pay. In order to make the best from this type of investment, it means that you have to have a good understanding of the value of these coins, otherwise you can find yourself losing a lot of money in the long run. If on the other hand you invest in silver bars, you will still have to pay premiums, but the premiums that you pay on these bars are generally far less than that of coins. Either way, it is still a good idea to keep a close eye on those premiums, because that will be an extra factor to consider when looking at the Silver Price. If on the other hand you do not wish to actually own silver, you might want to look at silver exchange traded funds or investing in silver mining companies.
By taking this route, you have to keep in mind that silver exchange traded funds and silver mining companies are not actual investments in silver, but rather, in the actual mining company or unit that comes from the exchange traded funds. These types of investments will be affected by Silver Rate, but they can also be affected by other factors, and so it is important to do a good amount of research before utilizing these two methods of investing indirectly in silver. In the end, you will be choosing a commodity that can be used as a way to hedge against poor economic conditions, but you still have to make sure that you know what you are doing to get the right results.
Oil, Gold, and Silver Prices Up as Saudi Arabia Faces Unrest
Kurt Nimmo
Infowars.com
March 7, 2011
Oil market speculators used the escalating conflict in Libya as an excuse to jack up crude prices to $106 per barrel today. Crude oil prices rose on news opposition forces and soldiers loyal to Moammar Gadhafi clashed near some of the country’s key energy infrastructure.
Benchmark crude for April delivery was up $2.25 to $106.67 a barrel by early afternoon in Europe. The price increase is the highest since September 2008, according to the Associated Press. In London, Brent crude for April delivery was up $1.80 to $117.77 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange.
Asian stocks and currencies also fell on news of rising violence in the Middle East. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index dropped 1.1 percent to 137.83 as of 3:32 p.m. in Tokyo, led by a 1.8 percent drop in Japan’s Nikkei 225 Stock Average.
A d v e r t i s e m e n t
Oil prices were on a steady rise prior to the engineered revolutions in North Africa. Traders were convinced that demand for oil was set to rise by around 2 percent in 2011. Industry experts and Wall Street speculators predicted a gradual move to $120 and even $150 per barrel oil prices.
Gold and silver prices also spiked on Monday. Gold for April delivery was adding $15.80 to $1,444.40 an ounce at the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, according to The Street.
After rising 4.2% Friday, spot silver traded up a further 2% or 66 cents to $36.33 a troy ounce today, driven by higher oil prices due to political unrest in Libya and elsewhere in the Middle East, the Wall Street Journal reports.
In December, Lindsey Williams predicted the price of oil would skyrocket to between $150 and $200 a barrel this year. Williams served as a pastor on the Alaskan pipeline and has insider sources within the oil industry.
On March 1, Williams told Alex Jones the uprisings in the Middle East are engineered by the global elite and will soon spread to Saudi Arabia. Protests are planned in the oil kingdom and the government has promised to dispatch 10,000 troops to put down any dissent. The demonstrations were initially planned for Friday – the Muslim day of worship when demonstrations are traditionally held – but organizers of demonstrations have decided to take to the streets today, March 7, according to Forex News. On Saturday, Saudi Arabia announced it would not allow any demonstrations or sit-in protests in the country.
A member of Saudi Arabia’s royal family, Prince Talal Bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud, said on February 17 the kingdom may see protests unless King Abdullah introduces reforms, according to BBC Arabic TV. Abdullah announced plans to spend about 110 billion riyals ($29 billion) on programs aimed at boosting housing, education and social welfare.
In response to the prospect of demonstrations in Saudi Arabia and the growing conflict in Libya, Dubai’s shares retreated for a third day on Monday. “Investors are shunning assets in the region as the political turmoil, which started in Tunisia more than two months ago, expanded to Oman, Bahrain, Yemen, Libya and Iran,” reports Bloomberg.
Infowars.com
March 7, 2011
Oil market speculators used the escalating conflict in Libya as an excuse to jack up crude prices to $106 per barrel today. Crude oil prices rose on news opposition forces and soldiers loyal to Moammar Gadhafi clashed near some of the country’s key energy infrastructure.
Benchmark crude for April delivery was up $2.25 to $106.67 a barrel by early afternoon in Europe. The price increase is the highest since September 2008, according to the Associated Press. In London, Brent crude for April delivery was up $1.80 to $117.77 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange.
Asian stocks and currencies also fell on news of rising violence in the Middle East. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index dropped 1.1 percent to 137.83 as of 3:32 p.m. in Tokyo, led by a 1.8 percent drop in Japan’s Nikkei 225 Stock Average.
A d v e r t i s e m e n t
Oil prices were on a steady rise prior to the engineered revolutions in North Africa. Traders were convinced that demand for oil was set to rise by around 2 percent in 2011. Industry experts and Wall Street speculators predicted a gradual move to $120 and even $150 per barrel oil prices.
Gold and silver prices also spiked on Monday. Gold for April delivery was adding $15.80 to $1,444.40 an ounce at the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, according to The Street.
After rising 4.2% Friday, spot silver traded up a further 2% or 66 cents to $36.33 a troy ounce today, driven by higher oil prices due to political unrest in Libya and elsewhere in the Middle East, the Wall Street Journal reports.
In December, Lindsey Williams predicted the price of oil would skyrocket to between $150 and $200 a barrel this year. Williams served as a pastor on the Alaskan pipeline and has insider sources within the oil industry.
On March 1, Williams told Alex Jones the uprisings in the Middle East are engineered by the global elite and will soon spread to Saudi Arabia. Protests are planned in the oil kingdom and the government has promised to dispatch 10,000 troops to put down any dissent. The demonstrations were initially planned for Friday – the Muslim day of worship when demonstrations are traditionally held – but organizers of demonstrations have decided to take to the streets today, March 7, according to Forex News. On Saturday, Saudi Arabia announced it would not allow any demonstrations or sit-in protests in the country.
A member of Saudi Arabia’s royal family, Prince Talal Bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud, said on February 17 the kingdom may see protests unless King Abdullah introduces reforms, according to BBC Arabic TV. Abdullah announced plans to spend about 110 billion riyals ($29 billion) on programs aimed at boosting housing, education and social welfare.
In response to the prospect of demonstrations in Saudi Arabia and the growing conflict in Libya, Dubai’s shares retreated for a third day on Monday. “Investors are shunning assets in the region as the political turmoil, which started in Tunisia more than two months ago, expanded to Oman, Bahrain, Yemen, Libya and Iran,” reports Bloomberg.
Gold rate: Analysts expect the yellow metal, silver prices to dip further
NEW DELHI: Decline in prices of gold and silver is good news for customers in the upcoming festive and marriage season, and analysts say that there is a possibility of further declines.
"In the short-term, there may be a further decline given the volatility," added D K Aggarwal, chairman and managing director of SMC Comtrade, a commodities brokerage. But no one is suggesting buying silver although there are several analysts pushing the yellow metal, a favourite of Indian housewives.
Gold and Silver Prices Soar
NEW YORK—Gold settled at a record high and silver reached fresh 31-year highs on heavy investor demand for safe-haven assets after Standard & Poor's put the U.S. economy on negative outlook.
The thinly traded April delivery gold contract settled at a record $1,492.30 per troy ounce, up 0.5%, or $7, on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.
The most actively traded contract, for June delivery, settled at a record $1,492.90 per troy ounce, up $6.90 or 0.5%.
Investors flocked to the safety of gold after the ratings agency revised its outlook for the U.S. government to "negative" from "stable." The downgrade accounted for rising debt levels and budget deficits, the S&P said, adding "we believe there is a material risk that U.S. policy makers might not reach an agreement on how to address medium- and long-term budgetary challenges by 2013 The change in tone spooked traders, with April gold soaring to an intraday record of $1,497.30 while June gold hit $1,498.60. Investment appetite for gold had eased in recent months as a stream of upbeat economic data ameliorated these concerns.
The downgrade also fanned concerns about the dollar's future as a reserve currency and a safe haven, with investors shedding the greenback in favor of gold. The precious metal is widely considered a store of value and an alternative currency, and many investors have been aggressively switching to the hard asset to protect their wealth from currency volatility.
"There's currency volatility and overall uncertainty about paper currencies and it's good for gold," said Frank Lesh, broker and futures analyst with FuturePath Trading.
Silver prices surged to fresh 31-year highs of $42.940 after the S&P report, on investment demand for a currency alternative and a hedge against economic uncertainty. Silver trades at a vast discount to gold prices, which redoubles its allure to price-conscious investors looking to guard their wealth from market uncertainty.
Silver for April delivery settled up 0.9%, or 39.1 cents, at $42.957 per troy ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. The day's high was well short of the 1980's record intraday price of $50.360, set Jan 18, 1980, when the Hunt brothers of Texas attempted to corner the market.
May delivery silver, the most actively traded contract, settled at a record $42.956 per troy ounce, up 0.9% or 38.5 cents, but off its intraday record of $43.560 per troy ounce.
Precious metals are likely to rally further on renewed safe-haven demand as concerns about European sovereign debt escalate, with gold set to breach the psychologically important $1,500 level in the coming days, analysts said.
Market speculation has intensified that Greece won't meet its debt payment obligations despite help from the European Union and the International Monetary Fund. These worries are redoubled by talk that additional aid won't be provided, sending investors scampering for a safe harbor from rising uncertainty, analysts at Commerzbank said in a note to clients.
"Uncertainty among market players should persist and gold should remain in high demand as a safe haven," Commerzbank said.
Meanwhile, market speculation about other financially weak euro-zone states continues to fan these worries, with many naming Spain as the next likely bailout candidate.
Some market watchers predict a correction in the coming days as technical traders move to cash in the sharp gains made over the four-day rally. Technical traders typically consider three consecutive days of gains as a signal to cash in profits, but Monday's sharp declines in equity markets are postponing the likely correction.
"The stock market needs to stabilize a little bit," said Patrick Lafferty, technical analyst with Capital Trading Group at MF Global. "But, from a technical standpoint, it's an excellent level to see some profit-taking.
Gold Price Chart - Live Spot Gold Prices
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BullionVault is the place to buy gold bullion online at live gold prices as fully allocated gold bullion, held in the gold vault and country of your choice. View live gold price charts with real-time gold prices and extensive historical gold prices to help you decide the best gold price and when you should be buying gold bullion. Watch the live gold market with realtime updating of gold prices. Learn how to buy gold with our online help and comprehensive gold topics.
BullionVault is the place to buy gold bullion online at live gold prices as fully allocated gold bullion, held in the gold vault and country of your choice. View live gold price charts with real-time gold prices and extensive historical gold prices to help you decide the best gold price and when you should be buying gold bullion. Watch the live gold market with realtime updating of gold prices. Learn how to buy gold with our online help and comprehensive gold topics.
Gold Price
GOLDPRICE.ORG provides you with fast loading charts of the current gold price per ounce, gram and kilogram in 27 major currencies. We provide you with timely and accurate silver and gold price commentary, gold price history charts for the past 30 days, 60 days, 1, 5, 10 and 30 years and gold futures quotes and charts. You can also find out where to buy gold coins from gold dealers at the best gold prices or compare eBay gold prices and eBay silver prices.
The Gold Price Has Broken Out Into a New Rally
Gold Price Close 02-Dec : 1,747.00
Change : -34.20 or -2.0%
Silver Price Close Today : 3217.00
Silver Price Close 02-Dec : 3262.00
Change : -45.00 or -1.4%
Platinum Price Close Today : 1,514.80
Platinum Price Close 02-Dec : 1,547.50
Change : -32.70 or -2.2%
Palladium Price Close Today : 684.65
Palladium Price Close 02-Dec : 643.60
Change : 41.05 or 6.0%
Gold Silver Ratio Today : 53.24
Gold Silver Ratio 02-Dec : 53.56
Change : -0.31 or 0.99%
Dow Industrial : 11,997.70
Dow Industrial 02-Dec: 12,020.03
Change : -22.33 or -0.2%
US Dollar Index : 78.81
US Dollar Index 02-Dec : 78.29
Change : 0.52 or 0.7%
Franklin Sanders has not published any commentary today, if he publishes later today it will be posted here.
Argentum et aurum comparenda sunt -- -- Gold and silver must be bought.
- Franklin Sanders, The Moneychanger
The-MoneyChanger.com
© 2011, The Moneychanger. May not be republished in any form, including electronically, without our express permission.
To avoid confusion, please remember that the comments above have a very short time horizon. Always invest with the primary trend. Gold's primary trend is up, targeting at least $3,130.00; silver's primary is up targeting 16:1 gold/silver ratio or $195.66; stocks' primary trend is down, targeting Dow under 2,900 and worth only one ounce of gold; US$ or US$-denominated assets, primary trend down; real estate bubble has burst, primary trend down.
WARNING AND DISCLAIMER. Be advised and warned:
Do NOT use these commentaries to trade futures contracts. I don't intend them for that or write them with that short term trading outlook. I write them for long-term investors in physical metals. Take them as entertainment, but not as a timing service for futures.
NOR do I recommend investing in gold or silver Exchange Trade Funds (ETFs). Those are NOT physical metal and I fear one day one or another may go up in smoke. Unless you can breathe smoke, stay away. Call me paranoid, but the surviving rabbit is wary of traps.
NOR do I recommend trading futures options or other leveraged paper gold and silver products. These are not for the inexperienced.
NOR do I recommend buying gold and silver on margin or with debt.
What DO I recommend? Physical gold and silver coins and bars in your own hands.
One final warning: NEVER insert a 747 Jumbo Jet up your nose.
Change : -34.20 or -2.0%
Silver Price Close Today : 3217.00
Silver Price Close 02-Dec : 3262.00
Change : -45.00 or -1.4%
Platinum Price Close Today : 1,514.80
Platinum Price Close 02-Dec : 1,547.50
Change : -32.70 or -2.2%
Palladium Price Close Today : 684.65
Palladium Price Close 02-Dec : 643.60
Change : 41.05 or 6.0%
Gold Silver Ratio Today : 53.24
Gold Silver Ratio 02-Dec : 53.56
Change : -0.31 or 0.99%
Dow Industrial : 11,997.70
Dow Industrial 02-Dec: 12,020.03
Change : -22.33 or -0.2%
US Dollar Index : 78.81
US Dollar Index 02-Dec : 78.29
Change : 0.52 or 0.7%
Franklin Sanders has not published any commentary today, if he publishes later today it will be posted here.
Argentum et aurum comparenda sunt -- -- Gold and silver must be bought.
- Franklin Sanders, The Moneychanger
The-MoneyChanger.com
© 2011, The Moneychanger. May not be republished in any form, including electronically, without our express permission.
To avoid confusion, please remember that the comments above have a very short time horizon. Always invest with the primary trend. Gold's primary trend is up, targeting at least $3,130.00; silver's primary is up targeting 16:1 gold/silver ratio or $195.66; stocks' primary trend is down, targeting Dow under 2,900 and worth only one ounce of gold; US$ or US$-denominated assets, primary trend down; real estate bubble has burst, primary trend down.
WARNING AND DISCLAIMER. Be advised and warned:
Do NOT use these commentaries to trade futures contracts. I don't intend them for that or write them with that short term trading outlook. I write them for long-term investors in physical metals. Take them as entertainment, but not as a timing service for futures.
NOR do I recommend investing in gold or silver Exchange Trade Funds (ETFs). Those are NOT physical metal and I fear one day one or another may go up in smoke. Unless you can breathe smoke, stay away. Call me paranoid, but the surviving rabbit is wary of traps.
NOR do I recommend trading futures options or other leveraged paper gold and silver products. These are not for the inexperienced.
NOR do I recommend buying gold and silver on margin or with debt.
What DO I recommend? Physical gold and silver coins and bars in your own hands.
One final warning: NEVER insert a 747 Jumbo Jet up your nose.
Forex Currency Exchange Resources
The National Futures Association (NFA) is located at http://www.nfa.futures.org/index.asp. NFA is an independent provider of regulatory programs that safeguard the integrity of the derivatives markets.You want to make sure that the Forex broker or firm you are working with is registered with a regulatory body. This prevents fraud and minimizes risks with your investments. For example, FX Club at http://fxclub.com is a NFA member. This means that as a client, you can expect ethical and regulated services. NFA also offers arbitration and mediation programs to help investors and NFA Members resolve futures-related disputes. This is as vital to the foreign currency exchange market in the same manner the Sarbanes-Oxley Act is vital to the stock exchange. The NFA also helps investors conduct a background check on the firms and individuals offering global forex trading. NFA's Background Affiliation Status Information Center (BASIC), investors can quickly and easily check the registration status and disciplinary history of every firm and individual conducting global foreign currency trade. The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) is a United States government regulatory board. The CFTC website is located at http://www.cftc.gov/. In the same manner that background checks with NFA can help protect your individual investments from fraud, the CFTC offers multiple regulatory procedures and legal and ethical behavior guidelines for firms, banks, and brokers operating in the globally currency exchange market. The CFTC's website offers a comprehensive list of signs of fraud and delinquent investors, brokers, and firms. This way, you can do your research with a firm before you commit to global foreign currency trade with that institution.
Forex Fundamental Analysis Tips
Read these 8 Forex Fundamental Analysis Tips tips to make your life smarter, better, faster and wiser. Each tip is approved by our Editors and created by expert writers so great we call them Gurus. LifeTips is the place to go when you need to know about Forex tips and hundreds of other topics. Become a Guru or Become an Advertiser.
Forex Seminars
The foreign exchange currency market (Forex) averages over $5 trillion a day in trading volume.
Retail Forex traders can access this market 24 hours a day, five days a week, with nothing more than a computer or other Internet connected device, a Forex broker and trading software, some risk capital and one or more trading strategies.
Forex trading is simple. Prices can go up or down, or they can remain constant.
Exactly when they will do any of these three things is what presents the challenge and what makes it essential for Forex traders to become educated regarding the subject of accurately predicting future currency price levels.
This education is available in multiple formats. Books, either purchased or borrowed, training software, videos and live Forex training seminars are a few that many people find valuable.
Just as computers and Internet connections are ideally suited for the purpose of Forex training, however, they also supply an ideal learning environment in the form of what has come to be called the webinar.
Webinars are available from diverse sources and sampling a variety helps to shed light on the subject of Forex trading from different perspectives.
A Forex broker will offer webinars to existing and prospective clients to either encourage increased levels of trading or to solicit new clients to trade with their brokerage.
These are generally free of charge, with the broker hoping to recoup the expense involved from the fees attached to client trading transactions.
Trading platform developers will conduct webinars so that traders can evaluate and learn to use their software.
These two sources of Forex webinars usually our basic in nature, with more in-depth content available once a trading account has been funded with a broker or a license for a trading has been purchased.
The next level of Forex webinar is geared towards traders of an intermediate level, where a Forex coach will assist traders in a live trading environment.
While this type will typically offer a free trial period, at some point tuition fees will be involved.
In one common scenario, a Forex coach will produce training webinars that will provide instruction into the various technical and fundamental aspects of learning to anticipate future currency prices and combined these with a live trading room where participants can observe the coach’ theories and techniques in practice.
The upper echelon and therefore most expensive form of online webinar is where a Forex mentor works one-on-one with a trader.
One of the primary benefits of all webinars, with the exception of those conducted live during a trading session, is that they are archived for purposes of review or for being available at convenient times.
Webinars have proven to be such an effective learning and marketing tool that it is possible to attend classes dealing with any conceivable Forex subject. This gives the student/trader the freedom to focus on subject areas that are either of particular interest, or represent the opportunity to overcome a trading weakness.
For more information or to sample an extensive archive of Forex trading webinars, be sure to visit Lucror FX at www.lucrofx.com today.
Retail Forex traders can access this market 24 hours a day, five days a week, with nothing more than a computer or other Internet connected device, a Forex broker and trading software, some risk capital and one or more trading strategies.
Forex trading is simple. Prices can go up or down, or they can remain constant.
Exactly when they will do any of these three things is what presents the challenge and what makes it essential for Forex traders to become educated regarding the subject of accurately predicting future currency price levels.
This education is available in multiple formats. Books, either purchased or borrowed, training software, videos and live Forex training seminars are a few that many people find valuable.
Just as computers and Internet connections are ideally suited for the purpose of Forex training, however, they also supply an ideal learning environment in the form of what has come to be called the webinar.
Webinars are available from diverse sources and sampling a variety helps to shed light on the subject of Forex trading from different perspectives.
A Forex broker will offer webinars to existing and prospective clients to either encourage increased levels of trading or to solicit new clients to trade with their brokerage.
These are generally free of charge, with the broker hoping to recoup the expense involved from the fees attached to client trading transactions.
Trading platform developers will conduct webinars so that traders can evaluate and learn to use their software.
These two sources of Forex webinars usually our basic in nature, with more in-depth content available once a trading account has been funded with a broker or a license for a trading has been purchased.
The next level of Forex webinar is geared towards traders of an intermediate level, where a Forex coach will assist traders in a live trading environment.
While this type will typically offer a free trial period, at some point tuition fees will be involved.
In one common scenario, a Forex coach will produce training webinars that will provide instruction into the various technical and fundamental aspects of learning to anticipate future currency prices and combined these with a live trading room where participants can observe the coach’ theories and techniques in practice.
The upper echelon and therefore most expensive form of online webinar is where a Forex mentor works one-on-one with a trader.
One of the primary benefits of all webinars, with the exception of those conducted live during a trading session, is that they are archived for purposes of review or for being available at convenient times.
Webinars have proven to be such an effective learning and marketing tool that it is possible to attend classes dealing with any conceivable Forex subject. This gives the student/trader the freedom to focus on subject areas that are either of particular interest, or represent the opportunity to overcome a trading weakness.
For more information or to sample an extensive archive of Forex trading webinars, be sure to visit Lucror FX at www.lucrofx.com today.
about forex Contact Us Forex Glossary what is forex Trading? forex notice forex trading and Forex Brokers What is Foreign Excha
The Foreign Exchange market, also referred to as the “Forex” or “FX” market, is the largest financial market in the world, with a daily average turnover of approximately US$1.5 trillion. Foreign Exchange is the simultaneous buying of one currency and selling of another. The world’s currencies are on a floating exchange rate and are always traded in pairs, for example Euro/Dollar or Dollar/Yen. Where is the central location of the FX Market? FX Trading is not centralized on an exchange, as with the stock and futures markets. The FX market is considered an Over the Counter (OTC) or ‘Interbank’ market, due to the fact that transactions are conducted between two counterparts over the telephone or via an electronic network. Who are the participants in the FX Market? The Forex market is called an ‘Interbank’ market due to the fact that historically it has been dominated by banks, including central banks, commercial banks, and investment banks. However, the percentage of other market participants is rapidly growing, and now includes large multinational corporations, global money managers, registered dealers, international money brokers, futures and options traders, and private speculators. When is the FX market open for trading? A true 24-hour market, Forex trading begins each day in Sydney, and moves around the globe as the business day begins in each financial center, first to Tokyo, then London, and New York. Unlike any other financial market, investors can respond to currency fluctuations caused by economic, social and political events at the time they occur – day or night.
MANAGED FOREX ACCOUNTS
Discover the returns possible in the world's largest financial market, the off-exchange foreign currency market (Forex). Forex is where banks, corporations, and whole countries make investments. It is just over the past few years that private investors, such as yourself, have been getting more involved with these opportunities. A managed Forex account gives an investor who cannot watch the market 24 hours a day the chance to participate in the world's largest market - Forex. These accounts are an ideal consideration for those who prefer to have their capital managed by professionals. Studies of professionally managed Forex accounts have often shown performance not related to the stock market. Consequently, allocating a portion of an investment portfolio to a Forex managed account can be a great way to enhance the overall performance of your portfolio, independently of what the stock markets are doing.
We have sought the most outstanding Forex traders and teams from around the world, representing different Forex trading methods, trading styles and risk levels. For each of them we provide background information and recent performance records. If you are desiring to invest you will find details about the brokers and the process of obtaining forms. No investment is suitable for everyone. Many financial professionals recommend that you manage risk by spreading your involvement over several opportunities.
Foreign exchange (Forex) banks
There are no central exchange headquarter for foreign exchange because it is an open market where dealers negotiate their own price feeds through proprietary platforms. The main geographic trading center however, is in London, followed by New York, Tokyo, Hong Kong and Singapore.
Foreign exchange banks throughout the world participate and play a big role in forex, although their roles have been greatly reduced from yesteryear. John Atkin points out in his book The Foreign Exchange Market Of London that "The Bank had long used a mixture of nods, winks and arm twisting to influence the behavior of participants in the domestic money and banking markets." It is no secret that Foreign exchange banks dominate the top level of access for the best Forex spread. Using their big pool of clients along with their own accounts, inter-bank market made up more than half of all Forex transactions.
In the late 1930's banks were the market maker for specified currencies. According to Atkin, "In the case of the US dollar / sterling rate, the Bank announced - when the market re-opened on 5 September 1939 - that its buying rate for dollars would be $4.06, and that its selling would be $4.02. This spread of 4 US cents or 400 points, compared with a normal peacetime inter-bank spread of 13 points, or less." His observation serve to highlight the profitable spread enjoyed by banks in that era. This trend continued until after World War II, when a normal foreign market exchange market slowly became apparent.
Banks do not have total control over foreign exchange rates as they fluctuate according to as actual monetary flow, budget, trade deficits, changes in GDP growth and interest rates and other economic conditions. In foreign exchange platforms, virtually everyone get access to major news at the same time, and banks are no different. Nevertheless, banks still gain the upper hand from monitoring the trend of their customers' order flow.
Apart from normal banks, central banks also participate in the foreign exchange market to regulate currencies in protection of their economy.Central banks or and national banks serve a dominant role in controlling inflation, interest rates and money supply. Since a country's currency rates have direct implications on it's economy through the trade balance, almost all central banks tend to intervene to influence the value of their currencies. This is known as managed float.
Central banks can determine foreign exchange rates to a certain extend, as they have huge foreign exchange reserves in hand to stabilize the market. Again, this does not always work as the combined resources in the actual market usually have a bigger say. As highlighted by William P. Osterberg in his article 'Why Intervention Rarely Works' in year 2000, "foreign-exchange-market intervention is generally ineffective when undertaken independent of monetary policy." An example of central banks' limitations are evident in the 1997 Southeast Asia economic crisis when the International Monetary Fund (IMF) failed to prevent currency depreciation.
Foreign exchange banks throughout the world participate and play a big role in forex, although their roles have been greatly reduced from yesteryear. John Atkin points out in his book The Foreign Exchange Market Of London that "The Bank had long used a mixture of nods, winks and arm twisting to influence the behavior of participants in the domestic money and banking markets." It is no secret that Foreign exchange banks dominate the top level of access for the best Forex spread. Using their big pool of clients along with their own accounts, inter-bank market made up more than half of all Forex transactions.
In the late 1930's banks were the market maker for specified currencies. According to Atkin, "In the case of the US dollar / sterling rate, the Bank announced - when the market re-opened on 5 September 1939 - that its buying rate for dollars would be $4.06, and that its selling would be $4.02. This spread of 4 US cents or 400 points, compared with a normal peacetime inter-bank spread of 13 points, or less." His observation serve to highlight the profitable spread enjoyed by banks in that era. This trend continued until after World War II, when a normal foreign market exchange market slowly became apparent.
Banks do not have total control over foreign exchange rates as they fluctuate according to as actual monetary flow, budget, trade deficits, changes in GDP growth and interest rates and other economic conditions. In foreign exchange platforms, virtually everyone get access to major news at the same time, and banks are no different. Nevertheless, banks still gain the upper hand from monitoring the trend of their customers' order flow.
Apart from normal banks, central banks also participate in the foreign exchange market to regulate currencies in protection of their economy.Central banks or and national banks serve a dominant role in controlling inflation, interest rates and money supply. Since a country's currency rates have direct implications on it's economy through the trade balance, almost all central banks tend to intervene to influence the value of their currencies. This is known as managed float.
Central banks can determine foreign exchange rates to a certain extend, as they have huge foreign exchange reserves in hand to stabilize the market. Again, this does not always work as the combined resources in the actual market usually have a bigger say. As highlighted by William P. Osterberg in his article 'Why Intervention Rarely Works' in year 2000, "foreign-exchange-market intervention is generally ineffective when undertaken independent of monetary policy." An example of central banks' limitations are evident in the 1997 Southeast Asia economic crisis when the International Monetary Fund (IMF) failed to prevent currency depreciation.
Daily forex forecast - Foreign exchange
U.S. Dollar Trading (USD) the Dollar was under pressure as the EUR/USD and stocks rallied on the ECB rate cut and good Weekly Jobless claims but then gained heavily as stocks reversed sharply when ECB President Draghi refused to increase the bond buying operations of the European central bank. In US stocks, DJIA -198 points closing at 11997, S&P -26 points closing at 1234 and NASDAQ -52 points closing at 2596. Looking ahead, October International Trade is forecast at -43.5bn vs. -43.1bn previously.
The Euro (EUR) the rally above 1.3450 was brief and the reversal very sharp with traders disappointed that no new measures were announced and the skeptical that the EU leaders would be able to work out a new deal at their 2 day summit finishing Friday. A lot of pressure is on the leaders to come up with new ways to support the market but Germany is resistant to many of the ideas. Looking ahead, EU Summit Conclusion.
The Japanese Yen (JPY) the USD/JPY moved lower with the USD weakness as the Euro and other risk assets rallied but support was found under Y77.20 and the major bounced back to Y77.70. EUR/JPY had a very sharp drop on the day back to Y103 at one point. The EUR/JPY dropping below Y100 may prompt more intervention from Japanese authorities with the European export market very important for many Japanese firms.
The Sterling (GBP) the BOE held at 0.5% as widely expected and the GBP/USD flowed the Euro higher and then lower after the Draghi disappointment. EUR/GBP tested 0.8500 briefly at the height of the EUR/USD weakness but this level held and we saw a small bounce into the close. GBP/USD was able to hold above 1.5600 and will follow the Euro again today for movement. Looking ahead, October Trade Balance forecast at -9.4bn vs. -9.8bn previously.
The Australian Dollar (AUD) weak Australian Job numbers in November with a -6k change vs. +10k forecast sent the AUD/USD lower in Asia but optimism in Europe saw the risk pair rally to 1.0380 before once again reversing aggressively on the ECB disappointment. The outlook is closely linked to the stock market but also Chinese data which is released today and could further suggest that the Asian giant is slowing down. Looking ahead, Chinese CPI forecast at 4.4% vs. 5.5% y/y previously.
Oil & Gold (XAU) Gold and most commodities slumped overnight with the preciously metal slumping over 2% with the ECB refusing to print money. Oil fell back below $100 in a large move on the back of risk off trade and USD strength.
The Euro (EUR) the rally above 1.3450 was brief and the reversal very sharp with traders disappointed that no new measures were announced and the skeptical that the EU leaders would be able to work out a new deal at their 2 day summit finishing Friday. A lot of pressure is on the leaders to come up with new ways to support the market but Germany is resistant to many of the ideas. Looking ahead, EU Summit Conclusion.
The Japanese Yen (JPY) the USD/JPY moved lower with the USD weakness as the Euro and other risk assets rallied but support was found under Y77.20 and the major bounced back to Y77.70. EUR/JPY had a very sharp drop on the day back to Y103 at one point. The EUR/JPY dropping below Y100 may prompt more intervention from Japanese authorities with the European export market very important for many Japanese firms.
The Sterling (GBP) the BOE held at 0.5% as widely expected and the GBP/USD flowed the Euro higher and then lower after the Draghi disappointment. EUR/GBP tested 0.8500 briefly at the height of the EUR/USD weakness but this level held and we saw a small bounce into the close. GBP/USD was able to hold above 1.5600 and will follow the Euro again today for movement. Looking ahead, October Trade Balance forecast at -9.4bn vs. -9.8bn previously.
The Australian Dollar (AUD) weak Australian Job numbers in November with a -6k change vs. +10k forecast sent the AUD/USD lower in Asia but optimism in Europe saw the risk pair rally to 1.0380 before once again reversing aggressively on the ECB disappointment. The outlook is closely linked to the stock market but also Chinese data which is released today and could further suggest that the Asian giant is slowing down. Looking ahead, Chinese CPI forecast at 4.4% vs. 5.5% y/y previously.
Oil & Gold (XAU) Gold and most commodities slumped overnight with the preciously metal slumping over 2% with the ECB refusing to print money. Oil fell back below $100 in a large move on the back of risk off trade and USD strength.
Welcome to Hantec Markets
If you are a Forex (FX) trader and are looking for the best online Forex broker to execute your trades fairly on the FX market, look no further than Hantec Markets for the ultimate Forex trading experience. We put our extensive experience as a UK Forex (FX) broker to use in order to ensure that you get the most out of each online foreign exchange trade. We are a UK based Forex broker offering a 24-hour FX trading service to a global retail and institutional client base. Please click here to view our Forex trading hours.
At Hantec Markets, we understand that as the Forex (FX) market and Bullion market evolve your needs as a trader can rapidly change. We know the importance of listening, and we take immediate action to respond to your foreign exchange and currency trading needs. We are backed by the Hantec Group, a leading multinational Forex (FX) broker headquartered in Hong Kong. Our extensive expertise in currency trading, our vast knowledge of the foreign exchange markets and our superior technological know-how has allowed us to develop innovative, high quality products and professional online Forex brokerage services.
Hantec Markets are foreign exchange brokers who offer No Dealing Desk Forex execution, so you get the tightest Forex spreads of the major currency pairs streamed to you. Our trading platforms include Metatrader 4 (MT4), the world’s leading online Forex (FX) trading platform, and Currenex, the leading liquidity provider to financial institutions.
Our mission is to provide foreign exchange traders with the best online Forex (FX) trading experience on the market in a secure and regulated environment, and become the leaders among the world's best online Forex (FX) brokers.
So whether you are Forex (FX) day trading or using Forex trading programs/robots or automated Forex trading signals make Hantec Markets your 1st choice for all your requirements on the Forex (FX) market. If you are new to Forex trading online, make your first Forex trade with Hantec and download a demo MT4 or Currenex trading platform now
At Hantec Markets, we understand that as the Forex (FX) market and Bullion market evolve your needs as a trader can rapidly change. We know the importance of listening, and we take immediate action to respond to your foreign exchange and currency trading needs. We are backed by the Hantec Group, a leading multinational Forex (FX) broker headquartered in Hong Kong. Our extensive expertise in currency trading, our vast knowledge of the foreign exchange markets and our superior technological know-how has allowed us to develop innovative, high quality products and professional online Forex brokerage services.
Hantec Markets are foreign exchange brokers who offer No Dealing Desk Forex execution, so you get the tightest Forex spreads of the major currency pairs streamed to you. Our trading platforms include Metatrader 4 (MT4), the world’s leading online Forex (FX) trading platform, and Currenex, the leading liquidity provider to financial institutions.
Our mission is to provide foreign exchange traders with the best online Forex (FX) trading experience on the market in a secure and regulated environment, and become the leaders among the world's best online Forex (FX) brokers.
So whether you are Forex (FX) day trading or using Forex trading programs/robots or automated Forex trading signals make Hantec Markets your 1st choice for all your requirements on the Forex (FX) market. If you are new to Forex trading online, make your first Forex trade with Hantec and download a demo MT4 or Currenex trading platform now
Financial Institutions
Financial institutions looking for an additional revenue stream with no associated costs can utilise our integrated foreign exchange and payment service to provide international payments for their customers.
Using the services of a specialist provider to deliver international payments to your customers adds value to your business and enhances your brand. Our services can be white-labelled and seamlessly integrated into your existing product portfolio.
Financial institutions looking for an additional revenue stream with no associated costs can utilise our integrated foreign exchange and payment service to provide international payments for their customers.
We provide white-labelled solutions for financial institutions which are processing a large number of cross-border payments and wish to outsource this to a foreign exchange specialist at no additional cost. Currencies Direct have a number of different options available for your customers which will be seamlessly integrated into your product portfolio, enhancing your brand with no competitive risk. We are regulated and authorised by the FSA so you know your customers’ funds are secure.
If you require additional information or want to set up an appointment with one of our financial institutions experts,
Using the services of a specialist provider to deliver international payments to your customers adds value to your business and enhances your brand. Our services can be white-labelled and seamlessly integrated into your existing product portfolio.
Financial institutions looking for an additional revenue stream with no associated costs can utilise our integrated foreign exchange and payment service to provide international payments for their customers.
We provide white-labelled solutions for financial institutions which are processing a large number of cross-border payments and wish to outsource this to a foreign exchange specialist at no additional cost. Currencies Direct have a number of different options available for your customers which will be seamlessly integrated into your product portfolio, enhancing your brand with no competitive risk. We are regulated and authorised by the FSA so you know your customers’ funds are secure.
If you require additional information or want to set up an appointment with one of our financial institutions experts,
City Foreign Exchange Ltd
City Foreign Exchange Ltd. (aka City Forex) was incorporated in Hong Kong in 1996, starting off with one retail outlet in an inner alley of the famous Chung King Mansion which is at the heart of the bustling Tsim Sha Tsui area. In the subsequent years since its inception, City Forex branched out domestically as well as internationally. In 1998 City Forex became an Agent of Western Union Financial Services and presently offers the Western Union Money Transfer service out of its own locations as well as through its vast network of Sub Agents in Hong Kong, Australia, Fiji Islands and New Zealand.
WELCOME TO GOLDBERG FOREX GROUP
Currency Exchange also referred to as Foreign Exchange, FX, or Forex, is the trading of one currency against another. The Currency Exchange Market is an inter-bank or inter-dealer market that was established in 1971 when floating exchange rates began to materialize. In addition, it is an Over-The-Counter market, meaning that transactions are conducted between two counter parties that agree to trade via the telephone or electronic network. Trading is thus not centralized, as is the case with many stock markets or as the case for currency futures or options, which trade on special exchanges. Currencies are traded every day for numerous reasons. For example:
Consumers typically come into contact with currency exchange when they travel. They go to a bank or currency exchange bureau to convert one currency (typically, their "home currency") into another (i.e. the currency of the country they intend to travel to) so they can pay for goods and services in the foreign country.
Businesses typically have to convert currencies when they conduct business outside their home country. For example, if they export goods to another country and receive payment in the currency of that foreign country, then the payment must often be converted back to the home currency. Similarly, if they have to import goods or services, then businesses will often have to pay in a foreign currency, requiring them to first convert their home currency into the foreign currency.
Commercial and Investment Banks trade currencies as a service for their commercial banking, deposit and lending customers. These institutions also generally participate in the currency market for hedging and proprietary trading purposes.
Governments and central banks trade currencies to improve trading conditions or to intervene in an attempt to adjust economic or financial imbalances. Although they do not trade for speculative reasons, they are a non-profit organization; they often tend to be profitable, since they generally trade on a long-term basis.
Investors and speculators require currency exchange whenever they trade in any foreign investment, be that equities, bonds, bank deposits, or real estate. Investors and speculators also trade currencies directly in order to benefit from movements in the currency exchange markets. Speculators are often day traders, trying to take advantage of market movements in very short time periods; buying a currency and then selling it again may happen within hours or even minutes. They are attracted to currency trading for numerous reasons, including (i) the size and daily volatility of the market (ii) the almost perfect liquidity of the Foreign Exchange Market, (iii) the fact that the Foreign Exchange Market is traded 24 hours a day.
When executing transactions for Foreign Exchange clients, Goldberg Forex Group utilizes the services of a futures commission merchant (FCM) FX Advantage, the foreign exchange equivalent of a broker dealer. FX Advantage is registered with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and are members of the National Futures Association (NFA).
The professionals at Goldberg Forex Group are available to help all qualified investors with the various opportunities and mechanics of trading the Foreign Exchange Market. Before opening an account, we will verify the suitability of each client and make certain there is a full understanding of the potential risk and rewards of trading the Foreign Exchange Markets.
Forex speculators will be able to trade directly on-line, or for those Individuals, who prefer to have their funds managed by professionals, can attain the services of Goldberg Forex Group to do so.
Those clients attaining the services of Goldberg Forex Group to trade the Forex Market will be provided with read only access to their account, will have sole deposit/withdrawal rights, and will be able to track account equity and total profit/loss in real time. Goldberg Forex Group has limited power of attorney to trade the account only and does not have deposit/withdrawal authorization. In addition, clients can create up to the minute account statements online, 24 hours a day.
At Goldberg Forex Group we stand ready to assist you at any time.
Consumers typically come into contact with currency exchange when they travel. They go to a bank or currency exchange bureau to convert one currency (typically, their "home currency") into another (i.e. the currency of the country they intend to travel to) so they can pay for goods and services in the foreign country.
Businesses typically have to convert currencies when they conduct business outside their home country. For example, if they export goods to another country and receive payment in the currency of that foreign country, then the payment must often be converted back to the home currency. Similarly, if they have to import goods or services, then businesses will often have to pay in a foreign currency, requiring them to first convert their home currency into the foreign currency.
Commercial and Investment Banks trade currencies as a service for their commercial banking, deposit and lending customers. These institutions also generally participate in the currency market for hedging and proprietary trading purposes.
Governments and central banks trade currencies to improve trading conditions or to intervene in an attempt to adjust economic or financial imbalances. Although they do not trade for speculative reasons, they are a non-profit organization; they often tend to be profitable, since they generally trade on a long-term basis.
Investors and speculators require currency exchange whenever they trade in any foreign investment, be that equities, bonds, bank deposits, or real estate. Investors and speculators also trade currencies directly in order to benefit from movements in the currency exchange markets. Speculators are often day traders, trying to take advantage of market movements in very short time periods; buying a currency and then selling it again may happen within hours or even minutes. They are attracted to currency trading for numerous reasons, including (i) the size and daily volatility of the market (ii) the almost perfect liquidity of the Foreign Exchange Market, (iii) the fact that the Foreign Exchange Market is traded 24 hours a day.
When executing transactions for Foreign Exchange clients, Goldberg Forex Group utilizes the services of a futures commission merchant (FCM) FX Advantage, the foreign exchange equivalent of a broker dealer. FX Advantage is registered with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and are members of the National Futures Association (NFA).
The professionals at Goldberg Forex Group are available to help all qualified investors with the various opportunities and mechanics of trading the Foreign Exchange Market. Before opening an account, we will verify the suitability of each client and make certain there is a full understanding of the potential risk and rewards of trading the Foreign Exchange Markets.
Forex speculators will be able to trade directly on-line, or for those Individuals, who prefer to have their funds managed by professionals, can attain the services of Goldberg Forex Group to do so.
Those clients attaining the services of Goldberg Forex Group to trade the Forex Market will be provided with read only access to their account, will have sole deposit/withdrawal rights, and will be able to track account equity and total profit/loss in real time. Goldberg Forex Group has limited power of attorney to trade the account only and does not have deposit/withdrawal authorization. In addition, clients can create up to the minute account statements online, 24 hours a day.
At Goldberg Forex Group we stand ready to assist you at any time.
Forex Reviews- The Fair Forex Trading Forum
Foreign exchange currency trading is a risky business with much to lose and much to gain. As a professional forex broker and personal trader, I have realized the fast profits this market can reap, while witnessing the dog-eat-dog nature of the beast, in which buyers lose their shirts every minute.
Whether you are a forex trader or just curious about forex currency trading, you owe it to yourself to separate the wheat from the chafe. The Internet is awash in foreign exchange currency trading websites whose sole existences are dependent upon ignorant forex investors. From get-rich-quick forex software schemes to free forex training, forex educational seminars, free forex signals, forex forums, and more, the fraudulence that surrounds the fx trading market is frightening.
Forex trading is very different from the U.S. stock market. The major differences include:
Forex has no central exchange
Forex trading can be done around the clock
Forex has no overseeing regulatory commission, such as the SEC
The forex market is a wild, open arena without rules, laws, or a governing body. No one cares if your money is taken. No one will lose any sleep if you’ve been lied to. There are no repercussions if you’re treated unfairly. Investors trade at their own risk and have no legal recourse to enforce justice.
I know. I’ve been there. The scammers have burned me more than once. In an attempt to further my own knowledge, I fell for the magical software sales pitches and followed the crooked paths to the stolen treasures, only to be let down ad nauseam.
I served my time as a forex broker, which was an eye-opening experience. I heard and saw the manipulation of client profits that was business as usual. It quickly shifted my interest in trading and brokering forex to that of protecting forex traders. I redirected my efforts from studying daily forex signals to researching forex websites. I was determined to devise a resource on which forex investors could rely for honest, fair information exchange.
Whether you are a forex trader or just curious about forex currency trading, you owe it to yourself to separate the wheat from the chafe. The Internet is awash in foreign exchange currency trading websites whose sole existences are dependent upon ignorant forex investors. From get-rich-quick forex software schemes to free forex training, forex educational seminars, free forex signals, forex forums, and more, the fraudulence that surrounds the fx trading market is frightening.
Forex trading is very different from the U.S. stock market. The major differences include:
Forex has no central exchange
Forex trading can be done around the clock
Forex has no overseeing regulatory commission, such as the SEC
The forex market is a wild, open arena without rules, laws, or a governing body. No one cares if your money is taken. No one will lose any sleep if you’ve been lied to. There are no repercussions if you’re treated unfairly. Investors trade at their own risk and have no legal recourse to enforce justice.
I know. I’ve been there. The scammers have burned me more than once. In an attempt to further my own knowledge, I fell for the magical software sales pitches and followed the crooked paths to the stolen treasures, only to be let down ad nauseam.
I served my time as a forex broker, which was an eye-opening experience. I heard and saw the manipulation of client profits that was business as usual. It quickly shifted my interest in trading and brokering forex to that of protecting forex traders. I redirected my efforts from studying daily forex signals to researching forex websites. I was determined to devise a resource on which forex investors could rely for honest, fair information exchange.
Further Information on Forex Scams & Frauds
Forex fraud is a growing problem. It can be found everywhere from boiler room scam artist's, to some guy you met at the coffee shop the other day, even past trusted brokers and executives have been involved in forex scams. The most common victims are the one's who think it will never happen to them. Though there is no guaranteed way to avoid forex fraud, it is possible to trade, minimize the chance of becoming a victim of a forex scam, and prosper in the market providing you remain diligent and alert in every decision you make. Don't let your hard earned dollars become an easy profit for some forex scam artist, make sure any person you choose to do business with is duly regulated in the country they operate from.
Forex Market Watch - Avoid Foreign Exchange Trading Scams and Frauds
This site is designed to inform traders and investors about forex scam, commodity fraud, and other investment scams.
ForexFraud.com is determined to be the very best informative guide on the subject of fraud and scams related to the forex trading market. Not only have we compiled a list of trusted forex brokers for you to choose from, the site is also updated regularly.
ForexFraud.com is determined to be the very best informative guide on the subject of fraud and scams related to the forex trading market. Not only have we compiled a list of trusted forex brokers for you to choose from, the site is also updated regularly.
Forex historyForeign exchange history, origins of the forex
In order to gain a complete understanding of what forex is, it is useful to examine the reasons that lead to its existence in the first place. Exhaustively detailing the historical events that shaped the foreign exchange market into what it is today is of no great importance to the Fx trader and therefore we will happily omit explanations of historical events such as the Bretton Woods accord in favor of a more specific insight into the reasoning behind foreign exchange as a medium of exchange of goods and services.
Originally our ancestors conducted trading of goods against other goods this system of bartering was of course quite inefficient and required lengthy negotiation and searching to be able to strike a deal. Eventually forms of metal like bronze, silver and gold came to be used in standardized sizes and later grades (purity) to facilitate the exchange of merchandise. The basis for these mediums of exchange was acceptance by the general public and practical variables like durability and storage. Eventually during the late middle ages, a variety of paper IOU started gaining popularity as an exchange medium.
The obvious advantage of carrying around 'precious' paper versus carrying around bags of precious metal was slowly recognized through the ages. Eventually stable governments adopted paper currency and backed the value of the paper with gold reserves. This came to be known as the gold standard. The Bretton Woods accord in July 1944 fixed the dollar to 35 USD per ounce and other currencies to the dollar. In 1971, president Nixon suspended the convertibility to gold and let the US dollar 'float' against other currencies.
Since then the foreign exchange market has developed into the largest market in the world with a total daily turnover of about 3.2 trillion USD. Traditionally an institutional (inter-bank) market, the popularity of online currency trading offered to the private individual is democratising forex and widening the retail market.
Originally our ancestors conducted trading of goods against other goods this system of bartering was of course quite inefficient and required lengthy negotiation and searching to be able to strike a deal. Eventually forms of metal like bronze, silver and gold came to be used in standardized sizes and later grades (purity) to facilitate the exchange of merchandise. The basis for these mediums of exchange was acceptance by the general public and practical variables like durability and storage. Eventually during the late middle ages, a variety of paper IOU started gaining popularity as an exchange medium.
The obvious advantage of carrying around 'precious' paper versus carrying around bags of precious metal was slowly recognized through the ages. Eventually stable governments adopted paper currency and backed the value of the paper with gold reserves. This came to be known as the gold standard. The Bretton Woods accord in July 1944 fixed the dollar to 35 USD per ounce and other currencies to the dollar. In 1971, president Nixon suspended the convertibility to gold and let the US dollar 'float' against other currencies.
Since then the foreign exchange market has developed into the largest market in the world with a total daily turnover of about 3.2 trillion USD. Traditionally an institutional (inter-bank) market, the popularity of online currency trading offered to the private individual is democratising forex and widening the retail market.
Exchange Rates & Foreign Currency Exchange Rate
Welcome to Exchange Rates UK
Exchange Rates UK is a site devoted to bringing you the latest currency news, historical data, currency conversion and exchange rates, using mid-market rates updated minutely (22:00 Sun - 22:00 Fri GMT)
Best Exchange Rates - £2k+
Excellent Exchange Rates, Free
Transfers, No Fees. Get Quote Now!
www.TorFX.com/free-transfers
Also find a wealth of information in our guides such as foreign exchange, money transfers and forex trading...
Also see Larger Live Cross Rates Table below.. Our Currency Exchange Rates section offers live currency rates and historical exchange rates in a wide range of options. Most pages have our currency converter widget for fast accurate currency conversion. In addition you can use our currency calculator or the fun exchange rate calculator. You can also reach a currency homepage by using the Quick Currency Search Dropdown over on the top right of every page. Some quick links to popular rates are: Euro exchange rate, Dollar exchange rate, Pound exchange rate, Australian Dollar exchange rate). NEW! Compare exchange rates.
From each currency page you can drill down to the currency pair you require, which provides today's FX rate/intraday chart, the day's range and links to the historical charts/data
Exchange Rates UK is a site devoted to bringing you the latest currency news, historical data, currency conversion and exchange rates, using mid-market rates updated minutely (22:00 Sun - 22:00 Fri GMT)
Best Exchange Rates - £2k+
Excellent Exchange Rates, Free
Transfers, No Fees. Get Quote Now!
www.TorFX.com/free-transfers
Also find a wealth of information in our guides such as foreign exchange, money transfers and forex trading...
Also see Larger Live Cross Rates Table below.. Our Currency Exchange Rates section offers live currency rates and historical exchange rates in a wide range of options. Most pages have our currency converter widget for fast accurate currency conversion. In addition you can use our currency calculator or the fun exchange rate calculator. You can also reach a currency homepage by using the Quick Currency Search Dropdown over on the top right of every page. Some quick links to popular rates are: Euro exchange rate, Dollar exchange rate, Pound exchange rate, Australian Dollar exchange rate). NEW! Compare exchange rates.
From each currency page you can drill down to the currency pair you require, which provides today's FX rate/intraday chart, the day's range and links to the historical charts/data
History of Foreign Exchange
The foreign exchange market (fx or forex) as we know it today originated in 1973. However, money has been around in one form or another since the time of Pharaohs. The Babylonians are credited with the first use of paper bills and receipts, but Middle Eastern moneychangers were the first currency traders who exchanged coins from one culture to another. During the middle ages, the need for another form of currency besides coins emerged as the method of choice. These paper bills represented transferable third-party payments of funds, making foreign currency exchange trading much easier for merchants and traders and causing these regional economies to flourish.
From the infantile stages of forex during the Middle Ages to WWI, the forex markets were relatively stable and without much speculative activity. After WWI, the forex markets became very volatile and speculative activity increased tenfold. Speculation in the forex market was not looked on as favorable by most institutions and the public in general. The Great Depression and the removal of the gold standard in 1931 created a serious lull in forex market activity. From 1931 until 1973, the forex market went through a series of changes. These changes greatly affected the global economies at the time and speculation in the forex markets during these times was little, if any.
The Bretton Woods Accord
The first major transformation, the Bretton Woods Accord, occurred toward the end of World War II. The United States, Great Britain and France met at the United Nations Monetary and Financial Conference in Bretton Woods, N.H. to design a new global economic order. The location was chosen because, at the time, the U.S. was the only country unscathed by war. Most of the major European countries were in shambles. Up until WWII, Great Britain's currency, the Great British Pound, was the major currency by which most currencies were compared. This changed when the Nazi campaign against Britain included a major counterfeiting effort against its currency. In fact, WWII vaulted the U.S. dollar from a failed currency after the stock market crash of 1929 to benchmark currency by which most other international currencies were compared. The Bretton Woods Accord was established to create a stable environment by which global economies could restore themselves. The Bretton Woods Accord established the pegging of currencies and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in hope of stabilizing the global economic situation.
Now, major currencies were pegged to the U.S. dollar. These currencies were allowed to fluctuate by one percent on either side of the set standard. When a currency's exchange rate would approach the limit on either side of this standard the respective central bank would intervene to bring the exchange rate back into the accepted range. At the same time, the US dollar was pegged to gold at a price of $35 per ounce further bringing stability to other currencies and world forex situation.
The Bretton Woods Accord lasted until 1971. Ultimately, it failed, but did accomplish what its charter set out to do, which was to re-establish economic stability in Europe and Japan.
The Beginning of the free-floating system
After the Bretton Woods Accord came the Smithsonian Agreement in December of 1971. This agreement was similar to the Bretton Woods Accord, but allowed for a greater fluctuation band for the currencies. In 1972, the European community tried to move away from its dependency on the dollar. The European Joint Float was established by West Germany, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxemburg. The agreement was similar to the Bretton Woods Accord, but allowed a greater range of fluctuation in the currency values.
Both agreements made mistakes similar to the Bretton Woods Accord and in 1973 collapsed. The collapse of the Smithsonian agreement and the European Joint Float in 1973 signified the official switch to the free-floating system. This occurred by default as there were no new agreements to take their place. Governments were now free to peg their currencies, semi-peg or allow them to freely float. In 1978, the free-floating system was officially mandated.
In a final effort to gain independence from the dollar, Europe created the European Monetary System in July of 1978. Like all of the previous agreements, it failed in 1993.
The major currencies today move independently from other currencies. The currencies are traded by anyone who wishes. This has caused a recent influx of speculation by banks, hedge funds, brokerage houses and individuals. Central banks intervene on occasion to move or attempt to move currencies to their desired levels. The underlying factor that drives today's forex markets, however, is supply and demand. The free-floating system is ideal for today's forex markets. It will be interesting to see if in the future our planet endures another war similar to those of the early 20th century. If so, how will the forex markets be affected? Will the dollar be the safe haven it has been for so many years? Only time will te
TIMELINE OF FOREIGN EXCHANGE
1944 � Bretton Woods Accord is established to help stabilize the global economy after World War II.
1971 Smithsonian Agreement established to allow for greater fluctuation band for currencies.
1972 European Joint Float established as the European community tried to move away from its dependency on the U.S. dollar.
1973 Smithsonian Agreement and European Joint Float failed and signified the official switch to a free-floating system.
1978 The European Monetary System was introduced so other countries could try to gain independence from the U.S. dollar.
1978 Free-floating system officially mandated by the IMF.
1993 European Monetary System fails making way for a world-wide free-floating system.
From the infantile stages of forex during the Middle Ages to WWI, the forex markets were relatively stable and without much speculative activity. After WWI, the forex markets became very volatile and speculative activity increased tenfold. Speculation in the forex market was not looked on as favorable by most institutions and the public in general. The Great Depression and the removal of the gold standard in 1931 created a serious lull in forex market activity. From 1931 until 1973, the forex market went through a series of changes. These changes greatly affected the global economies at the time and speculation in the forex markets during these times was little, if any.
The Bretton Woods Accord
The first major transformation, the Bretton Woods Accord, occurred toward the end of World War II. The United States, Great Britain and France met at the United Nations Monetary and Financial Conference in Bretton Woods, N.H. to design a new global economic order. The location was chosen because, at the time, the U.S. was the only country unscathed by war. Most of the major European countries were in shambles. Up until WWII, Great Britain's currency, the Great British Pound, was the major currency by which most currencies were compared. This changed when the Nazi campaign against Britain included a major counterfeiting effort against its currency. In fact, WWII vaulted the U.S. dollar from a failed currency after the stock market crash of 1929 to benchmark currency by which most other international currencies were compared. The Bretton Woods Accord was established to create a stable environment by which global economies could restore themselves. The Bretton Woods Accord established the pegging of currencies and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in hope of stabilizing the global economic situation.
Now, major currencies were pegged to the U.S. dollar. These currencies were allowed to fluctuate by one percent on either side of the set standard. When a currency's exchange rate would approach the limit on either side of this standard the respective central bank would intervene to bring the exchange rate back into the accepted range. At the same time, the US dollar was pegged to gold at a price of $35 per ounce further bringing stability to other currencies and world forex situation.
The Bretton Woods Accord lasted until 1971. Ultimately, it failed, but did accomplish what its charter set out to do, which was to re-establish economic stability in Europe and Japan.
The Beginning of the free-floating system
After the Bretton Woods Accord came the Smithsonian Agreement in December of 1971. This agreement was similar to the Bretton Woods Accord, but allowed for a greater fluctuation band for the currencies. In 1972, the European community tried to move away from its dependency on the dollar. The European Joint Float was established by West Germany, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxemburg. The agreement was similar to the Bretton Woods Accord, but allowed a greater range of fluctuation in the currency values.
Both agreements made mistakes similar to the Bretton Woods Accord and in 1973 collapsed. The collapse of the Smithsonian agreement and the European Joint Float in 1973 signified the official switch to the free-floating system. This occurred by default as there were no new agreements to take their place. Governments were now free to peg their currencies, semi-peg or allow them to freely float. In 1978, the free-floating system was officially mandated.
In a final effort to gain independence from the dollar, Europe created the European Monetary System in July of 1978. Like all of the previous agreements, it failed in 1993.
The major currencies today move independently from other currencies. The currencies are traded by anyone who wishes. This has caused a recent influx of speculation by banks, hedge funds, brokerage houses and individuals. Central banks intervene on occasion to move or attempt to move currencies to their desired levels. The underlying factor that drives today's forex markets, however, is supply and demand. The free-floating system is ideal for today's forex markets. It will be interesting to see if in the future our planet endures another war similar to those of the early 20th century. If so, how will the forex markets be affected? Will the dollar be the safe haven it has been for so many years? Only time will te
TIMELINE OF FOREIGN EXCHANGE
1944 � Bretton Woods Accord is established to help stabilize the global economy after World War II.
1971 Smithsonian Agreement established to allow for greater fluctuation band for currencies.
1972 European Joint Float established as the European community tried to move away from its dependency on the U.S. dollar.
1973 Smithsonian Agreement and European Joint Float failed and signified the official switch to a free-floating system.
1978 The European Monetary System was introduced so other countries could try to gain independence from the U.S. dollar.
1978 Free-floating system officially mandated by the IMF.
1993 European Monetary System fails making way for a world-wide free-floating system.
Dangers of Globalism (One World Govt. & Currency) History Lesson from 1932..!
Owing to the failure of the world's Governments to discover a remedy for the economic evils with which all nations are now afflicted, we are being told by our leading politicians, economists and journalists that no nation is to-day a master of its own destiny, and that the economic affairs of the world are so interwoven that a remedy can only be found in the union of all nations. It is proposed by various publicists that it will be necessary to have an international currency, that all tariffs must be abolished; and Sir Arthur Salter goes so far as to propose a federation of the various European races. Apparently, these writers and speakers have given but superficial consideration to this whole subject, or else they are the instruments of the financial group that is bent upon controlling the trade, industries, and even the politics of the world.
Let us first take the subject of tariffs: The object of tariff protection is to limit competition mainly to the producers of the country in which protection has been adopted. Protection has been made necessary by the attempt to establish a universal monetary system. If we take the United States as an illustration: Their plea for protective tariffs has always been the protection of American labour for the purpose of raising the status of the working classes above the level of that of other nations. In this respect the tariffs have been unquestionably effective. In no country in the world has labour been more highly paid. Moreover, it is quite certain that had there been no tariffs, one of two things would have happened: either the United States would have been inundated with goods from the Far East, such as China and Japan and India, and many of her industries would have been destroyed; or else the American operatives would have had to live on a very much lower plane of existence.
Now turning to the financial question: The effects of a universal currency would be, in the absence of tariffs, to reduce the working classes of all countries to one very low standard of living. The masses of mankind would be engaged in a life and death struggle for the possession of money and for the control of foreign markets; and the nation who could produce goods at the cheapest rate – in other words, the nation whose operatives could be induced to live at the lowest stage of existence compatible with their ability to produce goods – would become the most successful!
No greater calamity could befall the world's inhabitants than the establishment of the economic system which the League of Nations is at present endeavouring to arrange. Both the financial and economic systems which the League has championed, are fraught with the greatest disaster to humanity. We have had the experience of the evils of the League's establishing the gold standard throughout Europe. The present crisis is the result of that absurd policy.
Far from adopting a universal world currency, the most beneficial policy would be for each nation to have its own national paper currency – a currency that has no circulating power beyond the boundaries of the nation issuing it. Such a currency forms a natural protection for its trade and industries. It prevents the cut-throat competition which a world currency permits, and it renders international trade a system of barter – that is, the exchange of goods for goods, which is the natural and rightful form of trade.
When England exchanges its coal and iron, cotton and woolen goods, for products which it does not or cannot produce – such as coffee, tea, spices, etc. – such trade is mutually beneficial to the countries engaged therein. But when Germany sends us cotton goods to compete in our own markets with our cotton goods, when America sends us boots and shoes to compete with our Leicester and Northampton shoe industries, and in return demands gold or our National Bonds, we are exposed to a twofold injury: the importation of what we are already manufacturing injures our industries and thereby lessens employment here, whilst the export of gold which has been the basis of our currency causes a shortage of purchasing power and tends to raise our Bank rate which adds to our costs of production and lessens the demand for our goods in our home market. Similarly, the export of our National Bonds tends to make us a tributary country, so that we have to export gold or other commodities as a tribute to the nation possessing the bonds for which we get no return.
The plea for world-wide or an international currency is of modern conception and has originated with the group of international money dealers who, to a large extent, control the money and credit of the world. This group have a settled policy, and all that is happening, and has happened for the last few years throughout the world, is according to a definite plan, viz., the world's conquest.
Until the beginning of the present century, the only known method of conquering the world was by military invasion – a very dangerous, expensive, and cruel system. But during the last half century it was realized that a far simpler, more effective and less dangerous method was possible by the control of money. By this method no armies or navies or munitions of war are required, no blood need be shed, and the public need know nothing of their danger until they are safely enslaved in the form of Debt. All that is necessary is to secure the control of the press and other channels of publicity, such as the radio and leading publicists.
This has already been done. International finance controls practically all the channels by which the public are influenced. The world's safety will only be achieved by breaking the money monopoly that has been established by the laws of nations.
http://www.abeldanger.net/2011/02/sh...angers-of.html
PS - Have we 'Learned Anything from History'..?
Well the 'Criminal Govts. & Banksters' have and they've been 'Repeating it Over & Over for Centuries'..!
I kid you not when I say this if Humanity doesn't 'Wake Up' and 'Take Back' our Govts. & Banking System (Soon) it will be the 'Death of Us ALL'..! (No Fearmongering intended, just another Historical FACT)..!
Its all in the 'History Books' written by those, who for 'Centuries' have 'Controlled & Enslaved Us'..!
Let us first take the subject of tariffs: The object of tariff protection is to limit competition mainly to the producers of the country in which protection has been adopted. Protection has been made necessary by the attempt to establish a universal monetary system. If we take the United States as an illustration: Their plea for protective tariffs has always been the protection of American labour for the purpose of raising the status of the working classes above the level of that of other nations. In this respect the tariffs have been unquestionably effective. In no country in the world has labour been more highly paid. Moreover, it is quite certain that had there been no tariffs, one of two things would have happened: either the United States would have been inundated with goods from the Far East, such as China and Japan and India, and many of her industries would have been destroyed; or else the American operatives would have had to live on a very much lower plane of existence.
Now turning to the financial question: The effects of a universal currency would be, in the absence of tariffs, to reduce the working classes of all countries to one very low standard of living. The masses of mankind would be engaged in a life and death struggle for the possession of money and for the control of foreign markets; and the nation who could produce goods at the cheapest rate – in other words, the nation whose operatives could be induced to live at the lowest stage of existence compatible with their ability to produce goods – would become the most successful!
No greater calamity could befall the world's inhabitants than the establishment of the economic system which the League of Nations is at present endeavouring to arrange. Both the financial and economic systems which the League has championed, are fraught with the greatest disaster to humanity. We have had the experience of the evils of the League's establishing the gold standard throughout Europe. The present crisis is the result of that absurd policy.
Far from adopting a universal world currency, the most beneficial policy would be for each nation to have its own national paper currency – a currency that has no circulating power beyond the boundaries of the nation issuing it. Such a currency forms a natural protection for its trade and industries. It prevents the cut-throat competition which a world currency permits, and it renders international trade a system of barter – that is, the exchange of goods for goods, which is the natural and rightful form of trade.
When England exchanges its coal and iron, cotton and woolen goods, for products which it does not or cannot produce – such as coffee, tea, spices, etc. – such trade is mutually beneficial to the countries engaged therein. But when Germany sends us cotton goods to compete in our own markets with our cotton goods, when America sends us boots and shoes to compete with our Leicester and Northampton shoe industries, and in return demands gold or our National Bonds, we are exposed to a twofold injury: the importation of what we are already manufacturing injures our industries and thereby lessens employment here, whilst the export of gold which has been the basis of our currency causes a shortage of purchasing power and tends to raise our Bank rate which adds to our costs of production and lessens the demand for our goods in our home market. Similarly, the export of our National Bonds tends to make us a tributary country, so that we have to export gold or other commodities as a tribute to the nation possessing the bonds for which we get no return.
The plea for world-wide or an international currency is of modern conception and has originated with the group of international money dealers who, to a large extent, control the money and credit of the world. This group have a settled policy, and all that is happening, and has happened for the last few years throughout the world, is according to a definite plan, viz., the world's conquest.
Until the beginning of the present century, the only known method of conquering the world was by military invasion – a very dangerous, expensive, and cruel system. But during the last half century it was realized that a far simpler, more effective and less dangerous method was possible by the control of money. By this method no armies or navies or munitions of war are required, no blood need be shed, and the public need know nothing of their danger until they are safely enslaved in the form of Debt. All that is necessary is to secure the control of the press and other channels of publicity, such as the radio and leading publicists.
This has already been done. International finance controls practically all the channels by which the public are influenced. The world's safety will only be achieved by breaking the money monopoly that has been established by the laws of nations.
http://www.abeldanger.net/2011/02/sh...angers-of.html
PS - Have we 'Learned Anything from History'..?
Well the 'Criminal Govts. & Banksters' have and they've been 'Repeating it Over & Over for Centuries'..!
I kid you not when I say this if Humanity doesn't 'Wake Up' and 'Take Back' our Govts. & Banking System (Soon) it will be the 'Death of Us ALL'..! (No Fearmongering intended, just another Historical FACT)..!
Its all in the 'History Books' written by those, who for 'Centuries' have 'Controlled & Enslaved Us'..!
History of the Gold Standard
What Is the History of the Gold Standard?:
Gold has always been used as the currency of choice. For most of history, it was used to make coins. Its value spurred exploration of the New World and in the California gold rush. By the mid-1800s, most countries began adopting the gold standard as a way to standardize transactions in a booming world trade market. It helped by guaranteeing that any amount of paper money could be redeemed by the currency's government for its value in gold. This meant transactions no longer had to be done with heavy gold bullion or coins. It increased the trust needed for trade since paper currency now had guaranteed value tied to something real.
This worked so well that, by World War I, most countries were on the gold standard. Despite a few recessions, it worked pretty well until the costly war began. Between 1914-1919, most countries suspended the gold standard so they could print enough money to pay for their military involvement. Unfortunately, printing money created hyperinflation. So much money was printed that it devalued each dollar, and prices skyrocketed. After the war, countries realized the value of tying their currency to a guaranteed value in gold. For that reason, most countries returned to a modified gold standard>(History.com, "Gold Standard")
Once the Great Depression hit with full force, countries once again had to abandon the gold standard. When the stock market crashed in 1929, investors began trading in currencies and commodities. As the price of gold rose, people traded in their dollars for gold. It worsened when bank began failing. The Fed kept raising interest rates, trying to make dollars more valuable and dissuade people from further depleting the U.S. gold reserves. These higher rates worsened the Depression by making the cost of doing business more expensive. Many companies went bankrupt, creating massive unemployment.
This time, war put countries back on the gold standard by ending the Great Depression. In1944, most countries adopted the Bretton-Woods system, which set the exchange value for all currencies in terms of gold. It obligated member countries to convert foreign official holdings of their currencies into gold at these par values. However, since the U.S. held most of the world's gold, many countries simply pegged the value of their currency to the dollar, thus making the dollar the defacto world currency. Gold was set at $35 per ounce. (Source: National Mining Association, History of Gold)
The Bretton Woods agreement meant that central banks had to maintain fixed exchange rates between their currencies and the dollar. They did this by buying their own country's currency in foreign exchange markets if their currency became too low relative to the dollar. If it became too high, they'd print more of their currency and sell it. Even though the dollar was still worth 1/35 of an ounce of gold, most countries no longer needed to exchange their currency for gold. The dollar had replaced it. As a result, the value of the dollar increased --- even though its worth in gold remained the same.
The history of global currency and monetary issues
The history in general of international finance
Capitalism’s Currency Crises and Fetishes from Asia to United States, bosses can’t control results of their competition
By Jack Barnes, 7 November 1992, Militant, 5 October 1998. International capitalism’s stock, bond, and currency markets today are indeed becoming more and more interconnected and, partly as a result, they are also becoming more unstable.
Beyond Greed and Scarcity, by Barnard Leitaer
Interview with Barnard Leitaer, Yes!, Spring 1997. An interview with a development banker of wide experience regarding the possibilities for a new kind of current better suied to building community and sustainability.
Disarming the markets
By Ignacio Ramonet, Le Monde diplomatique, December 1997. The money market crisis in Asia threatens the rest of the world. The globalisation of investment capital is causing universal insecurity, making a mockery of national boundaries, diminishing the power of states to uphold democracy and guarantee the wealth and prosperity of their peoples.
Greenspan Urges More Aid to Third-World Banks
By Richard W. Stevenson, The New York Times, 3 December 1997. Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan says that the current crisis in Asia has shown that global markets will ruthlessly batter weak financial systems. Institutions like the International Monetary Fund should do more to identify and head off banking problems in developing nations.
From the real economy to the speculative (excerpts)
Remarks by Bernard Lietaer at International Forum on Globalization (IFG) seminar, [15 December 1997]. The writer focuses on the alarming increase in global currency speculation. The potential implications are truly explosive, threatening global power arrangements, the sovereignty of nation-states, and the abilities of ordinary people to survive.
Destroying national currencies
By Michel Chossudovsky, 12 January 1998. Since the onslaught of the debt crisis in the early 1980s, the IMF has played a central role in exchange rate policy often requiring indebted Third World countries to devalue their currency by 50 percent as a "pre-condition" for the subsequent negotiation of a loan agreement. IMF sponsored currency devaluations have invariably resulted in abrupt price hikes and a dramatic compression of real earnings.
What sank Asia? Money sloshing around the world
By Robert Kuttner, Business Week, 27 July 1998. We are learning once again the fundamental difference between free commerce in ordinary goods and free commerce in money. The latter is destabilizing and deflationary—it holds the real economy hostage to the whims of financial speculation.
Exchange rates: Regimes in a fix
By Martin Wolf, Financial Times, Wednesday 19 August 1998. Adjustable exchange rates and free capital flows do not mix. If crises are to be avoided, countries must choose between them. Some countries devalue; others default. Few do both on the same day. Russia is the exception.
Martin to call for new rules to check global money flight
By Giles Gherson and Eric Beauchesne, Southam Newspapers, The Vancouver Sun, 29 September 1998. Paul Martin will today in a major speech to Commonwealth finance ministers in Ottawa, call for closer supervision of international banks and new rules to check the destabilizing global flight of money. He will then take the Canadian action plan to arrest spreading global financial turmoil to this weekend’s G 7 finance ministers’ meeting in Washington, where he hopes for an implementation.
IMF panel likely to pass gold sales to financial debt relief
From Neil Watkins of the Preamble Center, [19 April 1999]. The IMF, at the meeting next week of world finance ministers who oversee the lender, is likely to win authorization to sell some of its $29.25 billion of gold to finance debt relief for the world’s poorest countries.
"Dirty Money" Foundation of US Growth and Empire—Size and Scope of Money Laundering by US Banks
By James Petras, Professor of Sociology, Binghamton University, La journada [Mexico], 19 May 2001. There is a consensus that U.S. and European banks launder between $500 billion and $1 trillion of dirty money each year. Half of that money comes to the United States and circulated in the U.S. financial circuits.
Euro could outshine dollar in Indonesia
By Tony Sitathan, Asia Times, 3 April 2003. The almighty US dollar is under fire as the international currency of choice in Indonesia. Businesses, the central bank and some in government are eyeing the euro as an international transaction medium that could be less volatile in the long term and might carry less political baggage.
Bush’s Barrick Corps drops bombshell
From Gold Anti-Trust Action Committee (GATA), Tuesday 10 June 2003. It can hardly be denied any more that the dollar exchange rate control mechanism, the magic invoked behind the scenes when the US talks up the dollar, has been the suppression of the price of gold by essentially short-selling massive quantities of central bank gold. The world economy is in deep doodoo.
Capitalism’s Currency Crises and Fetishes from Asia to United States, bosses can’t control results of their competition
By Jack Barnes, 7 November 1992, Militant, 5 October 1998. International capitalism’s stock, bond, and currency markets today are indeed becoming more and more interconnected and, partly as a result, they are also becoming more unstable.
Beyond Greed and Scarcity, by Barnard Leitaer
Interview with Barnard Leitaer, Yes!, Spring 1997. An interview with a development banker of wide experience regarding the possibilities for a new kind of current better suied to building community and sustainability.
Disarming the markets
By Ignacio Ramonet, Le Monde diplomatique, December 1997. The money market crisis in Asia threatens the rest of the world. The globalisation of investment capital is causing universal insecurity, making a mockery of national boundaries, diminishing the power of states to uphold democracy and guarantee the wealth and prosperity of their peoples.
Greenspan Urges More Aid to Third-World Banks
By Richard W. Stevenson, The New York Times, 3 December 1997. Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan says that the current crisis in Asia has shown that global markets will ruthlessly batter weak financial systems. Institutions like the International Monetary Fund should do more to identify and head off banking problems in developing nations.
From the real economy to the speculative (excerpts)
Remarks by Bernard Lietaer at International Forum on Globalization (IFG) seminar, [15 December 1997]. The writer focuses on the alarming increase in global currency speculation. The potential implications are truly explosive, threatening global power arrangements, the sovereignty of nation-states, and the abilities of ordinary people to survive.
Destroying national currencies
By Michel Chossudovsky, 12 January 1998. Since the onslaught of the debt crisis in the early 1980s, the IMF has played a central role in exchange rate policy often requiring indebted Third World countries to devalue their currency by 50 percent as a "pre-condition" for the subsequent negotiation of a loan agreement. IMF sponsored currency devaluations have invariably resulted in abrupt price hikes and a dramatic compression of real earnings.
What sank Asia? Money sloshing around the world
By Robert Kuttner, Business Week, 27 July 1998. We are learning once again the fundamental difference between free commerce in ordinary goods and free commerce in money. The latter is destabilizing and deflationary—it holds the real economy hostage to the whims of financial speculation.
Exchange rates: Regimes in a fix
By Martin Wolf, Financial Times, Wednesday 19 August 1998. Adjustable exchange rates and free capital flows do not mix. If crises are to be avoided, countries must choose between them. Some countries devalue; others default. Few do both on the same day. Russia is the exception.
Martin to call for new rules to check global money flight
By Giles Gherson and Eric Beauchesne, Southam Newspapers, The Vancouver Sun, 29 September 1998. Paul Martin will today in a major speech to Commonwealth finance ministers in Ottawa, call for closer supervision of international banks and new rules to check the destabilizing global flight of money. He will then take the Canadian action plan to arrest spreading global financial turmoil to this weekend’s G 7 finance ministers’ meeting in Washington, where he hopes for an implementation.
IMF panel likely to pass gold sales to financial debt relief
From Neil Watkins of the Preamble Center, [19 April 1999]. The IMF, at the meeting next week of world finance ministers who oversee the lender, is likely to win authorization to sell some of its $29.25 billion of gold to finance debt relief for the world’s poorest countries.
"Dirty Money" Foundation of US Growth and Empire—Size and Scope of Money Laundering by US Banks
By James Petras, Professor of Sociology, Binghamton University, La journada [Mexico], 19 May 2001. There is a consensus that U.S. and European banks launder between $500 billion and $1 trillion of dirty money each year. Half of that money comes to the United States and circulated in the U.S. financial circuits.
Euro could outshine dollar in Indonesia
By Tony Sitathan, Asia Times, 3 April 2003. The almighty US dollar is under fire as the international currency of choice in Indonesia. Businesses, the central bank and some in government are eyeing the euro as an international transaction medium that could be less volatile in the long term and might carry less political baggage.
Bush’s Barrick Corps drops bombshell
From Gold Anti-Trust Action Committee (GATA), Tuesday 10 June 2003. It can hardly be denied any more that the dollar exchange rate control mechanism, the magic invoked behind the scenes when the US talks up the dollar, has been the suppression of the price of gold by essentially short-selling massive quantities of central bank gold. The world economy is in deep doodoo.
Global Trade And The Currency Market
The global economy facilitates the fluid movement of products and services around the globe, a trend that has continued virtually uninterrupted since the end of World War II. It is unlikely that the architects of this system could have envisioned what it would become when they met in the New Hampshire resort of Bretton Woods in July 1944, but much of the infrastructure they brought into existence continues to be relevant in today's global market. Even the name "Bretton Woods" lives on in a modern guise, characterized by the economic relationship the U.S. has with China and other rapidly developing economies. Read on as we cover the modern history of global trade and capital flows, their key underlying economic principles and why these developments still matter today.
In the Beginning
The delegates from the 45 allied powers who attended the Bretton Woods conference in 1944 were determined to ensure that the second half of the 20th century would look nothing like the first half, which consisted mostly of devastating wars and a worldwide economic depression. The World Bank and the International Monetary Fund would ensure global economic stability. (For more insight, check out What Is The International Monetary Fund? and What Is The World Bank?)
In order to facilitate a fair and orderly market for cross-border trade, the conference produced the Bretton Woods exchange rate system. This was a gold exchange system that was part gold standard and part reserve currency system. It established the U.S. dollar as a de facto global reserve currency. Foreign central banks could exchange dollars for gold at the fixed rate of $35 per ounce. At the time, the U.S. held more than 65% of the world's monetary gold reserves and was thus at the center of the system, with the recovering countries of Europe and Japan at the periphery. (To learn more, read The Gold Standard Revisited.)
All Together Now
For a time, this seemed like a win-win opportunity. Countries like Germany and Japan, in ruins after the war, rebuilt their economies on the backs of their growing export markets. In the U.S., growing affluence increased the demand for an ever-growing array of products from overseas markets. Volkswagen, Sony and Philips became household names. Predictably, U.S. imports grew and so did the U.S. trade deficit. A trade deficit increases when the value of imports exceeds that of exports, and vice versa. (To learn more, read Current Account Deficits.)
Read more: http://www.investopedia.com/articles/07global_trade.asp#ixzz1gF0mw1vy
In the Beginning
The delegates from the 45 allied powers who attended the Bretton Woods conference in 1944 were determined to ensure that the second half of the 20th century would look nothing like the first half, which consisted mostly of devastating wars and a worldwide economic depression. The World Bank and the International Monetary Fund would ensure global economic stability. (For more insight, check out What Is The International Monetary Fund? and What Is The World Bank?)
In order to facilitate a fair and orderly market for cross-border trade, the conference produced the Bretton Woods exchange rate system. This was a gold exchange system that was part gold standard and part reserve currency system. It established the U.S. dollar as a de facto global reserve currency. Foreign central banks could exchange dollars for gold at the fixed rate of $35 per ounce. At the time, the U.S. held more than 65% of the world's monetary gold reserves and was thus at the center of the system, with the recovering countries of Europe and Japan at the periphery. (To learn more, read The Gold Standard Revisited.)
All Together Now
For a time, this seemed like a win-win opportunity. Countries like Germany and Japan, in ruins after the war, rebuilt their economies on the backs of their growing export markets. In the U.S., growing affluence increased the demand for an ever-growing array of products from overseas markets. Volkswagen, Sony and Philips became household names. Predictably, U.S. imports grew and so did the U.S. trade deficit. A trade deficit increases when the value of imports exceeds that of exports, and vice versa. (To learn more, read Current Account Deficits.)
Read more: http://www.investopedia.com/articles/07global_trade.asp#ixzz1gF0mw1vy
Understanding International Currency Payments and Foreign Direct Investment Planning
The quick and dramatic changes in the markets in which stakeholders globally (made up of banks, commercial companies, investment management firms, hedge funds, retail Forex brokers, and investors) are able to buy, sell, exchange and speculate on different currencies reflect the argument that the international currency system has been a product of the past; and by implication, the dollar’s role reflect America’s historical clout, and not its present stature. The United States dollar has enjoyed what France’s finance minister in the 1960s, Valery Giscard d’Estaing, complained about as “an exorbitant privilege”. Since the mid 20th Century, the United States dollar has been the de facto world currency; with 40 and 60 percent of international financial transactions denominated in dollars and excelled as the world’s principal reserve currency. And in the period following the Breton Woods Conference in 1944, with exchange rates around the world pegged against the United States dollar, this rather reinforced the dominance of the United States dollar as a global currency. The only two known serious competitors to the eminence of the United States dollar as a world currency has been the Japanese yen which became ever more used as an international currency in the 1980s, but its utilization as an international currency diminished with the Japanese recession in the 1990s; and more recently, the euro which has increasingly competed with the US dollar in international finance.
This whole concept of a global world currency refers to the monetary systems that countries use to conduct business predicated on the agreement among countries that the exchange of goods and services is done according to exchange rates based on the major world currencies of the financially stable and active countries. Of course there are transaction costs involved when dealing with international payment systems – however, for major currencies transaction costs are negligible with respect to the price of commodities. It is critical therefore, to understand the monetary lingo of a country you want to do business in order to make the most of your dollars. Besides, often times, inflation does offer quite unique challenges for investors. Inflation with regards to world currencies means that inflation can devalue various currencies changing the so called rate of exchange. It is always advisable to have prior knowledge of what a country’s currency looks like, the denominations you will be dealing with and the current exchange rates because it is never a good experience having to fumble with fistfuls of strange looking bills in a foreign country.
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International Currency Payment Systems
For the business traveler and/or investor, there are certain things worth knowing:
A word for the wise, it is always a good thing to resist the urge to exchange funds at airports, train stations, hotels and cash kiosks. Actual banks in any country of the world always offer much better exchange rates. Some banks in investors’ home countries do have foreign cash options worth looking into as well. And by getting some foreign cash ahead of time either from local banks several days before travel or purchase currency online and have it delivered several days before travel are all more desirable options.
Also prudent to take advantage of FOREX training [http://www.forex-training.com/], an online collaborative environment which provides high quality training and educational resources for foreign exchange (“Forex”) and commodity traders.
Also, before you travel, review pictures of currencies you will encounter along the way.
And more over, consider carrying a currency converter to speed up the process.
There are other great resources available to help with a business traveler or investor’s international experience. Some notable resources include:
Venstar Exchange [http://www.venstar-exchange.com/] – with a team of international payments and foreign currency exchange experts, Venstar offers tailored international payment solutions and international wire transfer services at the lowest possible rates on all foreign currency exchange transactions. Venstar’s assistance and ability to send money worldwide can help streamline a company’s international payment processes.
Bloomberg [http://www.bloomberg.com/markets/currencies/] offers a chart of 8 major world currencies.
The Financial Times [http://markets.ft.com/ft/markets/currencies.asp] offers another cross chart along with access to the latest news, charts and spot rates and analysis of relative currency strength worldwide with the unique currency macromaps tool. FT also provides a currency converter to get instant exchange rate conversions between 31 major world currencies.
Exchange-Rates.org [http://www.exchange-rates.org/] offers world currency exchange rates and currency exchange rates history.
XE [http://www.xe.com/ucc/] provides a handy currency converter tool to calculate exchange rates between world currencies. XE’s Universal Currency Converter® offers the functionality to perform currency and foreign exchange calculations using live, mid-market rates. The Universal Currency Converter® contains the top 85 currencies listing the top 10 first.
CNBC [http://www.cnbc.com/id/15839178] pairs world currencies and provides up to date charts regarding exchange rates.
Aneki.com [http://www.aneki.com/lists.html], as a source for world rankings, offers a list of countries with their corresponding currency and abbreviation.
Options A to Z [http://www.optionsatoz.com/Classes/FreeClasses/ExploringtheWorldofCurrencies.aspx] offers a free class entitled “Exploring the World of Currencies” with additional classes on understanding currency quotes using currency futures and the creation of exchange rates.
This whole concept of a global world currency refers to the monetary systems that countries use to conduct business predicated on the agreement among countries that the exchange of goods and services is done according to exchange rates based on the major world currencies of the financially stable and active countries. Of course there are transaction costs involved when dealing with international payment systems – however, for major currencies transaction costs are negligible with respect to the price of commodities. It is critical therefore, to understand the monetary lingo of a country you want to do business in order to make the most of your dollars. Besides, often times, inflation does offer quite unique challenges for investors. Inflation with regards to world currencies means that inflation can devalue various currencies changing the so called rate of exchange. It is always advisable to have prior knowledge of what a country’s currency looks like, the denominations you will be dealing with and the current exchange rates because it is never a good experience having to fumble with fistfuls of strange looking bills in a foreign country.
]]>
International Currency Payment Systems
For the business traveler and/or investor, there are certain things worth knowing:
A word for the wise, it is always a good thing to resist the urge to exchange funds at airports, train stations, hotels and cash kiosks. Actual banks in any country of the world always offer much better exchange rates. Some banks in investors’ home countries do have foreign cash options worth looking into as well. And by getting some foreign cash ahead of time either from local banks several days before travel or purchase currency online and have it delivered several days before travel are all more desirable options.
Also prudent to take advantage of FOREX training [http://www.forex-training.com/], an online collaborative environment which provides high quality training and educational resources for foreign exchange (“Forex”) and commodity traders.
Also, before you travel, review pictures of currencies you will encounter along the way.
And more over, consider carrying a currency converter to speed up the process.
There are other great resources available to help with a business traveler or investor’s international experience. Some notable resources include:
Venstar Exchange [http://www.venstar-exchange.com/] – with a team of international payments and foreign currency exchange experts, Venstar offers tailored international payment solutions and international wire transfer services at the lowest possible rates on all foreign currency exchange transactions. Venstar’s assistance and ability to send money worldwide can help streamline a company’s international payment processes.
Bloomberg [http://www.bloomberg.com/markets/currencies/] offers a chart of 8 major world currencies.
The Financial Times [http://markets.ft.com/ft/markets/currencies.asp] offers another cross chart along with access to the latest news, charts and spot rates and analysis of relative currency strength worldwide with the unique currency macromaps tool. FT also provides a currency converter to get instant exchange rate conversions between 31 major world currencies.
Exchange-Rates.org [http://www.exchange-rates.org/] offers world currency exchange rates and currency exchange rates history.
XE [http://www.xe.com/ucc/] provides a handy currency converter tool to calculate exchange rates between world currencies. XE’s Universal Currency Converter® offers the functionality to perform currency and foreign exchange calculations using live, mid-market rates. The Universal Currency Converter® contains the top 85 currencies listing the top 10 first.
CNBC [http://www.cnbc.com/id/15839178] pairs world currencies and provides up to date charts regarding exchange rates.
Aneki.com [http://www.aneki.com/lists.html], as a source for world rankings, offers a list of countries with their corresponding currency and abbreviation.
Options A to Z [http://www.optionsatoz.com/Classes/FreeClasses/ExploringtheWorldofCurrencies.aspx] offers a free class entitled “Exploring the World of Currencies” with additional classes on understanding currency quotes using currency futures and the creation of exchange rates.
The Dollar as the World’s Reserve Currency
The one advantage that the United States has over every other country is the dollar. It is the world’s reserve currency, what does that mean? Well, it means that every currency is “pegged” to the dollar. We price oil, cotton, and other commodities to the dollar. This advantage allows the the Federal Reserve the ability to continue print money, while keeping the interest rates down. This is what is happening now with the series of QE’s. We are now in the middle of QE2 or Quantitative Easing 2 where the Federal Reserve is buying U.S. bonds or buying the U.S. debt. This QE2 action devalues the dollar and monetizes the debt, something Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said he would not do, but in reality is doing.
When a country continues to print money this causes inflation. The price of commodities rises because the value of the currency is decreasing. We are starting to see this happen in markets today. Look at the price of corn, cotton, sugar, oil, gold and silver as they are skyrocketing. As long as there is Quantitative Easing, these commodities will continue to rise. I believe we will see QE3 in the future because the government cannot stop printing money. If they stop printing the money, you will see the U.S. spiral in a “great depression” as never seen before.
The Federal Reserve is also keeping interest rates at or close to 0% and has been doing so for the past couple of years. This action cannot continue as the printing presses print money out of control. One day, the interest rates are going to have to rise to keep inflation in check. How much will they rise? I don’t know, but it will be noticed by all. We are following the same path as the Wiemar Republic in Germany, and just recently Zimbabwe. Inflation will sooner or later catch up to the actions of the Federal Reserve.
If the dollar loses it’s standing as the world’s reserve currency, it would be a disaster for the United States as this is the only reason that printing can continue without more destruction to the economy. Recently, there have been action to decouple the dollar as the reserve currency. China and Russia decided to start trading in their own currencies, instead of the dollar when buying and selling from one another. And recently the “economic minds” met at Bretton Woods to discuss future economic plans. This summit held by billionaire philanthropist George Soros is focusing on the future of the world economic prospects, and one topic of discussion was the dollar as the world reserve currency.
This is something that cannot happen overnight, but it is an alarm or a red flag telling us it is time to prepare for this action. There are things we need to be doing right now to prepare for the collapse of the dollar. Some people predict the collapse could happen as early as 2012, but only time will tell.
What should we do to protect ourselves? In future blogs, I will be discussing what I am doing to prepare to this. Sometimes it is difficult to prepare, but time is short, so I need to pick the pace to prepare for the economic disaster that is beyond the horizon.
I am not an economist, but I read, and research what is going on. I suggest that everyone reading this does the same. Don’t take my word for it, but don’t let this warning go unheeded. Research yourself and make your own decision. Below is a short video clip to help you down the road of information and research.
When a country continues to print money this causes inflation. The price of commodities rises because the value of the currency is decreasing. We are starting to see this happen in markets today. Look at the price of corn, cotton, sugar, oil, gold and silver as they are skyrocketing. As long as there is Quantitative Easing, these commodities will continue to rise. I believe we will see QE3 in the future because the government cannot stop printing money. If they stop printing the money, you will see the U.S. spiral in a “great depression” as never seen before.
The Federal Reserve is also keeping interest rates at or close to 0% and has been doing so for the past couple of years. This action cannot continue as the printing presses print money out of control. One day, the interest rates are going to have to rise to keep inflation in check. How much will they rise? I don’t know, but it will be noticed by all. We are following the same path as the Wiemar Republic in Germany, and just recently Zimbabwe. Inflation will sooner or later catch up to the actions of the Federal Reserve.
If the dollar loses it’s standing as the world’s reserve currency, it would be a disaster for the United States as this is the only reason that printing can continue without more destruction to the economy. Recently, there have been action to decouple the dollar as the reserve currency. China and Russia decided to start trading in their own currencies, instead of the dollar when buying and selling from one another. And recently the “economic minds” met at Bretton Woods to discuss future economic plans. This summit held by billionaire philanthropist George Soros is focusing on the future of the world economic prospects, and one topic of discussion was the dollar as the world reserve currency.
This is something that cannot happen overnight, but it is an alarm or a red flag telling us it is time to prepare for this action. There are things we need to be doing right now to prepare for the collapse of the dollar. Some people predict the collapse could happen as early as 2012, but only time will tell.
What should we do to protect ourselves? In future blogs, I will be discussing what I am doing to prepare to this. Sometimes it is difficult to prepare, but time is short, so I need to pick the pace to prepare for the economic disaster that is beyond the horizon.
I am not an economist, but I read, and research what is going on. I suggest that everyone reading this does the same. Don’t take my word for it, but don’t let this warning go unheeded. Research yourself and make your own decision. Below is a short video clip to help you down the road of information and research.
Historical Exchange Rates
Historical Currency Rates Comparison
Compare historical foreign exchange rates for up to five currencies against a base currency, as either a currency graph or currency table. OANDA Rates™ are available from January, 1990 for most major currencies.
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Type currency names, 3-letter ISO currency symbols, or country names to select your currencies. Convert world currencies, precious metals, or obsolete currencies, which are marked with an asterisk (*).
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Choose from either Bid, Midpoint, or Ask exchange rates—table or graph entries will be updated. (Find out more about bid and ask.)
Choose a percentage from the interbank list to better approximate the rates actually charged by your financial institution. (Find out more about interbank rates.)
Compare rates with the base currency using either the Actual rates, or the Percentage change from the start date.
Compare historical foreign exchange rates for up to five currencies against a base currency, as either a currency graph or currency table. OANDA Rates™ are available from January, 1990 for most major currencies.
Compare currencies as a currency chart or currency rate table
Type currency names, 3-letter ISO currency symbols, or country names to select your currencies. Convert world currencies, precious metals, or obsolete currencies, which are marked with an asterisk (*).
Click Graph for a currency conversion chart; Table for a currency conversion table.
Daily rates are for the 24-hour period ending 22:00 UTC on the day prior to posting. Average exchange rates are available daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly, or yearly.
Choose from either Bid, Midpoint, or Ask exchange rates—table or graph entries will be updated. (Find out more about bid and ask.)
Choose a percentage from the interbank list to better approximate the rates actually charged by your financial institution. (Find out more about interbank rates.)
Compare rates with the base currency using either the Actual rates, or the Percentage change from the start date.
THE HISTORY OF MONEY PART 3
WORLD WAR I (1914-1918)
The Germans borrowed money from the German Rothschilds bank, the British from the British Rothschilds bank, and the French from the French Rothschilds.
American super banker J.P. Morgan was amongst other things also a sales agent for war materials. Six months into the war his spending of $10 million a day made him the largest consumer on the planet.
The Rockefeller's and the head of president Willson's War Industries Board, Bernard Baruch each made some 200 million dollars while families contributed their sons to the bloody front lines, but profit was not the only motive for involvement.
Russia had spoiled the money changers plan to split America in two, and remained the last major country not to have its own central bank.
However, three years after the start of the war the entire Russian Royal Family was killed and Communism began.
You might find it strange to learn that the Russian Revolution was also fuelled with British money. Capitalist businessmen financing Communism?
Author Gary Allen gives his explanation:
"If one understands that socialism is not a share-the-wealth programme, but is in reality a method to consolidate and control the wealth, then the seeming paradox of super-rich men promoting socialism becomes no paradox at all. Instead, it becomes logical, even the perfect tool of power-seeking megalomaniacs.
Communism or more accurately, socialism, is not a movement of the downtrodden masses, but of the economic elite."
Gary Allen, Author
W.Cleon Skousen wrote in his book 'The Naked Capitalist'.
"Power from any source tends to create an appetite for additional power... It was almost inevitable that the super-rich would one day aspire to control not only their own wealth, but the wealth of the whole world.
To achieve this, they were perfectly willing to feed the ambitions of the power-hungry political conspirators who were committed to the overthrow of all existing governments and the establishments of a central world-wide dictatorship."
W.Cleon Skousen
Extreme revolutionary groups were controlled by being financed when they complied and cut off, with money sometimes being given to their opposition, when they didn't.
If you find this hard to believe, listen to what the so called dictator of the new Soviet Union had to say.
"The state does not function as we desired. The car does not obey. A man is at the wheel and seems to lead it, but the car does not drive in the desired direction. It moves as another force wishes."
Vladimir Lenin 1
Rep. Louis T. McFadden, chairman of the House Banking and Currency Committee throughout the 1920-30s explained it this way.
"The course of Russian history has, indeed, been greatly affected by the operations of international bankers... The Soviet Government has been given United States Treasury funds by the Federal Reserve Board... acting through the Chase Bank. ...
England has drawn money from us through the Federal Reserve Banks and has re-lent it at high rates of interest to the Soviet Government... The Dnieperstory Dam was built with funds unlawfully taken from the United States Treasury by the corrupt and dishonest Federal Reserve Board and the Federal Reserve Banks." Rep. Louis T.McFadden (D-PA) 2
Even when Communism collapsed in the Soviet Union, Boris Yeltsin revealed that most of the foreign aid was ending up, we quote. "straight back into the coffers of western banks in debt service."
The Germans borrowed money from the German Rothschilds bank, the British from the British Rothschilds bank, and the French from the French Rothschilds.
American super banker J.P. Morgan was amongst other things also a sales agent for war materials. Six months into the war his spending of $10 million a day made him the largest consumer on the planet.
The Rockefeller's and the head of president Willson's War Industries Board, Bernard Baruch each made some 200 million dollars while families contributed their sons to the bloody front lines, but profit was not the only motive for involvement.
Russia had spoiled the money changers plan to split America in two, and remained the last major country not to have its own central bank.
However, three years after the start of the war the entire Russian Royal Family was killed and Communism began.
You might find it strange to learn that the Russian Revolution was also fuelled with British money. Capitalist businessmen financing Communism?
Author Gary Allen gives his explanation:
"If one understands that socialism is not a share-the-wealth programme, but is in reality a method to consolidate and control the wealth, then the seeming paradox of super-rich men promoting socialism becomes no paradox at all. Instead, it becomes logical, even the perfect tool of power-seeking megalomaniacs.
Communism or more accurately, socialism, is not a movement of the downtrodden masses, but of the economic elite."
Gary Allen, Author
W.Cleon Skousen wrote in his book 'The Naked Capitalist'.
"Power from any source tends to create an appetite for additional power... It was almost inevitable that the super-rich would one day aspire to control not only their own wealth, but the wealth of the whole world.
To achieve this, they were perfectly willing to feed the ambitions of the power-hungry political conspirators who were committed to the overthrow of all existing governments and the establishments of a central world-wide dictatorship."
W.Cleon Skousen
Extreme revolutionary groups were controlled by being financed when they complied and cut off, with money sometimes being given to their opposition, when they didn't.
If you find this hard to believe, listen to what the so called dictator of the new Soviet Union had to say.
"The state does not function as we desired. The car does not obey. A man is at the wheel and seems to lead it, but the car does not drive in the desired direction. It moves as another force wishes."
Vladimir Lenin 1
Rep. Louis T. McFadden, chairman of the House Banking and Currency Committee throughout the 1920-30s explained it this way.
"The course of Russian history has, indeed, been greatly affected by the operations of international bankers... The Soviet Government has been given United States Treasury funds by the Federal Reserve Board... acting through the Chase Bank. ...
England has drawn money from us through the Federal Reserve Banks and has re-lent it at high rates of interest to the Soviet Government... The Dnieperstory Dam was built with funds unlawfully taken from the United States Treasury by the corrupt and dishonest Federal Reserve Board and the Federal Reserve Banks." Rep. Louis T.McFadden (D-PA) 2
Even when Communism collapsed in the Soviet Union, Boris Yeltsin revealed that most of the foreign aid was ending up, we quote. "straight back into the coffers of western banks in debt service."
XE Quick Cross Rates
uto-refresh 15x
0 : 07
USD EUR GBP INR AUD CAD ZAR NZD JPY
1 USD
1.00000
0.74710 0.63824 52.0425 0.97833 1.01765 8.09280 1.29032 77.5650
Inverse:
1.00000
1.33850 1.56680 0.01922 1.02215 0.98266 0.12357 0.77500 0.01289
1 EUR 1.33850
1.00000
0.85429 69.6588 1.30949 1.36212 10.8322 1.72710 103.820
Inverse: 0.74710
1.00000
1.17056 0.01436 0.76365 0.73415 0.09232 0.57901 0.00963
1 GBP 1.56680 1.17056
1.00000
81.5401 1.53285 1.59445 12.6798 2.02168 121.528
Inverse: 0.63824 0.85429
1.00000
0.01226 0.65238 0.62717 0.07887 0.49464 0.00823
Mid-market rates: 2011-12-11 15:28 UTC
0 : 07
USD EUR GBP INR AUD CAD ZAR NZD JPY
1 USD
1.00000
0.74710 0.63824 52.0425 0.97833 1.01765 8.09280 1.29032 77.5650
Inverse:
1.00000
1.33850 1.56680 0.01922 1.02215 0.98266 0.12357 0.77500 0.01289
1 EUR 1.33850
1.00000
0.85429 69.6588 1.30949 1.36212 10.8322 1.72710 103.820
Inverse: 0.74710
1.00000
1.17056 0.01436 0.76365 0.73415 0.09232 0.57901 0.00963
1 GBP 1.56680 1.17056
1.00000
81.5401 1.53285 1.59445 12.6798 2.02168 121.528
Inverse: 0.63824 0.85429
1.00000
0.01226 0.65238 0.62717 0.07887 0.49464 0.00823
Mid-market rates: 2011-12-11 15:28 UTC
Shifting wealth: Is the US dollar Empire falling
If history is any guide, the Chinese renminbi will soon be due to overtake the US dollar, just as the dollar replaced the pound sterling last century. But will the renminbi be ready for reserve currency status? This column discusses the issues at hand and explains why some experts would prefer the IMF’s Special Drawing Rights as the next global reserve currency.
Just ahead of the G20 London Summit in April, Zhou Xiaochuan (China's central bank governor) proposed replacing the US dollar as the international reserve currency with a new global system controlled by the IMF. The main global reserve currency would be represented by a basket of significant currencies and commodities, an extended version of the Fund’s Special Drawing Rights (SDRs). China's call for an overhaul of the global currency reserve system has been echoed by Russia's President Medvedev as an important building block of a new global financial architecture.
Major emerging economies, often net creditors to the rest of the world an with substantial holdings of US government debt, fear the potential inflationary risk of the US Federal Reserve printing money to finance bank bail outs. Their fears may be based on the “Triffin Dilemma” that postulates the necessity of US external deficits as long as the US dollar is the only global reserve currency. In a famous warning to Congress in 1960, the Belgian Yale economist Robert Triffin explained that as the marginal supplier of the world’s reserve currency, the US had no choice but to run persistent current account deficits. As the global economy expanded, demand for reserve assets increased. These could only be supplied to foreigners by America running a current account deficit and issuing dollar-denominated obligations to fund it. If the US stopped running balance of payments deficits and supplying reserves, the resulting shortage of liquidity would pull the global economy into a contractionary spiral (Triffin, 1961). Note that demand for foreign exchange reserves forces developing countries to transfer resources to the countries issuing those reserve currencies – a case of “reverse aid”.
China holds a huge official portfolio of US government bonds. It has already suffered valuation losses on its sovereign wealth funds that invested heavily in US financial intermediaries. But could China suffer valuation losses as a result of inflation and dollar devaluation, as is often maintained? Dollar weakness – against other key currencies – will not by itself inflict valuation losses on China's central bank as there would be no change in the renminbi value on the dollar component of China's huge FX reserves. It is renminbi appreciation against those currencies held in the FX reserves – often claimed by the West – that would inflict valuation losses as measured in renminbi.
In the recent decade, the US has used (and perhaps abused) the privileges that its reserve currency status has conveyed to the host country. To see this, look at Table 1, which displays a matrix of the global functions of money often attributed to Peter Kenen (Group of Thirty, 1983).
Table 1. Matrix of international currency use
Just ahead of the G20 London Summit in April, Zhou Xiaochuan (China's central bank governor) proposed replacing the US dollar as the international reserve currency with a new global system controlled by the IMF. The main global reserve currency would be represented by a basket of significant currencies and commodities, an extended version of the Fund’s Special Drawing Rights (SDRs). China's call for an overhaul of the global currency reserve system has been echoed by Russia's President Medvedev as an important building block of a new global financial architecture.
Major emerging economies, often net creditors to the rest of the world an with substantial holdings of US government debt, fear the potential inflationary risk of the US Federal Reserve printing money to finance bank bail outs. Their fears may be based on the “Triffin Dilemma” that postulates the necessity of US external deficits as long as the US dollar is the only global reserve currency. In a famous warning to Congress in 1960, the Belgian Yale economist Robert Triffin explained that as the marginal supplier of the world’s reserve currency, the US had no choice but to run persistent current account deficits. As the global economy expanded, demand for reserve assets increased. These could only be supplied to foreigners by America running a current account deficit and issuing dollar-denominated obligations to fund it. If the US stopped running balance of payments deficits and supplying reserves, the resulting shortage of liquidity would pull the global economy into a contractionary spiral (Triffin, 1961). Note that demand for foreign exchange reserves forces developing countries to transfer resources to the countries issuing those reserve currencies – a case of “reverse aid”.
China holds a huge official portfolio of US government bonds. It has already suffered valuation losses on its sovereign wealth funds that invested heavily in US financial intermediaries. But could China suffer valuation losses as a result of inflation and dollar devaluation, as is often maintained? Dollar weakness – against other key currencies – will not by itself inflict valuation losses on China's central bank as there would be no change in the renminbi value on the dollar component of China's huge FX reserves. It is renminbi appreciation against those currencies held in the FX reserves – often claimed by the West – that would inflict valuation losses as measured in renminbi.
In the recent decade, the US has used (and perhaps abused) the privileges that its reserve currency status has conveyed to the host country. To see this, look at Table 1, which displays a matrix of the global functions of money often attributed to Peter Kenen (Group of Thirty, 1983).
Table 1. Matrix of international currency use
Historically, one national currency has played a global role—or at most, a few national currencies
Historical records indicate that the silver drachma, issued by ancient Athens in the fifth century B.C.E. was likely the first currency that circulated widely outside its issuing state’s borders, followed by the gold aureus and silver denarius coins issued by Rome, even though the Athenian and Roman currencies circulated simultaneously for some time (see figure B3.1.1).
The dominance of the Roman-issued coins was brought to an end as the long cycle of inflation that characterized the economy of the Roman Empire from the first century C.E. through the early fourth century led to a continuous devaluation of the Roman-issued currency, causing it to become increasingly less accepted outside the Roman Empire. Ultimately, the aureus became valued according to its weight rather than its imputed “face value,” trading more as a commodity than a currency outside the Roman Empire and making way for the Byzantine Empire’s heavy gold solidus coin to become the dominant currency in international trade in the sixth century.
By the seventh century, the Arabian dinar had partially replaced the solidus in this role, although the solidus continued to circulate internationally at a debased value (reflecting the high financing needs of the Byzantine Empire) into the 11th century. Large fi scal costs also led to a gradual devaluation of the Arabian dinar starting at the end of the 10th century.
By the 13th century, the fiorino, issued by Florence, was widely used in the Mediterranean region for commercial transactions, only to be supplanted by the ducato of Venice in the 15th century. In the 17th and 18th centuries, the dominant international currency was issued by the Netherlands, reflecting that country’s role as a leading financial and commercial power at the time. At that point, paper bills began replacing coins as the international currency of circulation, even though they were not backed by the Dutch government or any other entity under sole sovereign control.
It was only when national central banks and treasuries began holding gold as reserves, beginning in the 19th century, that bills and interest-bearing deposit claims that could be substituted for gold also began to be held as reserves. This development coincided with the rise of Great Britain as the leading exporter of manufactured goods and services and the largest importer of food and industrial raw materials. Between the early 1860s and the outbreak of World War I in 1914, some 60 percent of the world’s trade was invoiced in British pounds sterling.
As U.K. banks expanded their overseas business, propelled by innovations in communications technology such as the telegraph, the British Pound was increasingly used as a currency of denomination for commercial transactions between non-U.K. residents—that is, the pound sterling became a more international currency.
This role for the pound was further enhanced by London’s emergence as the world’s leading shipper and insurer of traded goods and as a center for organized commodities markets, as well as by the growing amount of British foreign investment, of which a large share was in the form of long-term securities denominated in pounds sterling.
The dominance of the Roman-issued coins was brought to an end as the long cycle of inflation that characterized the economy of the Roman Empire from the first century C.E. through the early fourth century led to a continuous devaluation of the Roman-issued currency, causing it to become increasingly less accepted outside the Roman Empire. Ultimately, the aureus became valued according to its weight rather than its imputed “face value,” trading more as a commodity than a currency outside the Roman Empire and making way for the Byzantine Empire’s heavy gold solidus coin to become the dominant currency in international trade in the sixth century.
By the seventh century, the Arabian dinar had partially replaced the solidus in this role, although the solidus continued to circulate internationally at a debased value (reflecting the high financing needs of the Byzantine Empire) into the 11th century. Large fi scal costs also led to a gradual devaluation of the Arabian dinar starting at the end of the 10th century.
By the 13th century, the fiorino, issued by Florence, was widely used in the Mediterranean region for commercial transactions, only to be supplanted by the ducato of Venice in the 15th century. In the 17th and 18th centuries, the dominant international currency was issued by the Netherlands, reflecting that country’s role as a leading financial and commercial power at the time. At that point, paper bills began replacing coins as the international currency of circulation, even though they were not backed by the Dutch government or any other entity under sole sovereign control.
It was only when national central banks and treasuries began holding gold as reserves, beginning in the 19th century, that bills and interest-bearing deposit claims that could be substituted for gold also began to be held as reserves. This development coincided with the rise of Great Britain as the leading exporter of manufactured goods and services and the largest importer of food and industrial raw materials. Between the early 1860s and the outbreak of World War I in 1914, some 60 percent of the world’s trade was invoiced in British pounds sterling.
As U.K. banks expanded their overseas business, propelled by innovations in communications technology such as the telegraph, the British Pound was increasingly used as a currency of denomination for commercial transactions between non-U.K. residents—that is, the pound sterling became a more international currency.
This role for the pound was further enhanced by London’s emergence as the world’s leading shipper and insurer of traded goods and as a center for organized commodities markets, as well as by the growing amount of British foreign investment, of which a large share was in the form of long-term securities denominated in pounds sterling.
The History of World’s Reserve Currencies The History Of The World’s “Reserve” Currency: From Ancient Greece To Today
Probably the most interesting part of the previously discussed 174-page World Bank report on the future of world currencies, is, ironically, the part that deals with the past. In its discussion of why “Historically, one national currency has played a global role—or at most, a few national currencies”, the WB analyzes the history of the “reserve” or dominant currency from ancient times, through today.It is an engrossing narrative which ebbs and flows with the rise and flow of the dominant superpower (no surprise there). The bottom line of course is whether or not the US will retain its superpower status in an increasingly multipolar (and developing-led) world. And whether it will be replaced by China…or nobody. The implications for the next reserve currency of choice are substantial.
How Exchange Rates Work
A Brief History of Exchange Rates
For centuries, the currencies of the world were backed by gold. That is, a piece of paper currency issued by any world government represented a real amount of gold held in a vault by that government. In the 1930s, the U.S. set the value of the dollar at a single, unchanging level: 1 ounce of gold was worth $35. After World War II, other countries based the value of their currencies on the U.S. dollar. Since everyone knew how much gold a U.S. dollar was worth, then the value of any other currency against the dollar could be based on its value in gold. A currency worth twice as much gold as a U.S dollar was, therefore, also worth two U.S. dollars.
Unfortunately, the real world of economics outpaced this system. The U.S. dollar suffered from inflation (its value relative to the goods it could purchase decreased), while other currencies became more valuable and more stable. Eventually, the U.S. could no longer pretend that the dollar was worth as much as it had been, so the value was officially reduced so that 1 ounce of gold was now worth $70. The dollar's value was cut in half.
Finally, in 1971, the U.S. took away the gold standard altogether. This meant that the dollar no longer represented an actual amount of a precious substance -- market forces alone determined its value.
Today, the U.S. dollar still dominates many financial markets. In fact, exchange rates are often expressed in terms of U.S. dollars. Currently, the U.S. dollar and the euro account for approximately 50 percent of all currency exchange transactions in the world. Adding British pounds, Canadian dollars, Australian dollars, and Japanese yen to the list accounts for over 80 percent of currency exchanges altogether.
Currency history - history of Japanese Yen
The origin of Japanese currency can be traced to the Wu Zhu bronze coin of China, which was introduced under the Han Dynasty around 221 BC. Until the 8th Century the Japanese imported such coins from China. However, in 708 the Japanese government began minting their own silver and copper coins called the Wado Kaichin or Wado Kaiho, which imitated the Chinese Kai Yuan Tong Bao coin's size, shape, and weight.
Approximately 250 years later though, the Japanese government entered into a period of decline and as they could no longer mint their own currency, begun to import Chinese currency again. Over the next few centuries, the inflow of Chinese coins did not meet the demand for a monetary medium that resulted from the growing trade and economic expansion. To meet this demand, two privately minted Japanese coins (from the 14th - 16th century) Toraisen and the Shichusen entered into circulation.
Around the late 15th Century, warlords had accumulated large debts that needed to be paid off, which subsequently encouraged the minting of gold and silver coins known as the Koshu Kin. Under the rule of Toyotomi Hideyoshi (Edo Period), gold coinage was made into a standard currency. The Tokugawa Shogunate Government then established a unified monetary system that consisted of these gold coins in addition to silver and copper. Minting took place in the Kinza Gold mints where the present head office of the Bank of Japan now stands.
Although some paper currency had been introduced previously (circa 1600), it was not until the Meiji Restoration that the first nationally accepted paper money was established. The Meiji Government wished to simplify and centralise all the various coins (holding different values) that came about under the Edo Period and thus created the Yen in 1871. The New Currency Act developed a monetary system similar to that of European countries, and made a decimal accounting system of Rin, Sen, and Yen.
Thus the gold standard was adopted and the round-shaped Yen replaced the previous gold and silver coinage. The first national Yen banknotes of the 1870s resembled US banknotes as they were printed by a US company. However, the 153 national banks of Japan of the late 19th century were to lose their authority when the official Bank of Japan was established in 1882. he yen was introduced in 1872 as part of the modernization of the Japanese currency system. The value of the yen was originally linked directly to that of gold. After extensive devaluation resulting from World War II, the Bretton Woods system linked the yen to the US dollar. In turn, when the US started to abandon strict adherence to the gold standard in the early 1970s, the yen was allowed to float in 1973. However, since 1973, the Japanese government has maintained a policy of currency intervention, and the yen is therefore under a “dirty float” regime. This intervention continues until today. The Japanese government focuses on a competitive export market, and tries to ensure a low yen value. The Plaza Accord of 1985 temporarily changed this situation and led to a peak value against the US dollar in 1995, effectively increasing the value of Japan’s GDP to almost that of the United States. Since that time, however, the yen has greatly decreased in value. The Bank of Japan maintains a policy of zero to near-zero interest rates and the Japanese government has an extreme anti-inflation policy.
The yen is widely regarded as undervalued, and the Japanese government cannot keep supporting this low level indefinitely. The current situation is very similar to 1998, when low interest rates also created an undervalued yen, and a few global economic shocks - relatively moderate in nature – cause the yen to rapidly appreciate. The increase in value had seriously negative effects on various industries that relied on a cheap yen.
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