24-Hour Market
The Forex market is a seamless 24-hour market. Trading hours are from from Sunday at 5PM EST until Friday at 5PM EST. With the ability to trade during the U.S., Asian, and European market hours, traders have the advantage of customizing their own trading schedule.
Commission Free Trading
Most Forex Brokers charge no commission or additional transactions fees, unless otherwise agreed, to trade currencies online or over the phone. Combined with the tight, consistent, and fully transparent spread, Forex trading costs are lower than those of any other market.
Instantaneous Execution of Market Orders
Usually, Forex orders are executed instantaneously under normal market conditions . Through trading platform, traders execute directly on real time streaming prices.
Profit potential in both rising and falling markets
Unlike the equity market, there is no restriction on short selling in the currency market. Trading opportunities exist in the currency market regardless of whether a trader is long or short, or which way the market is moving. Since currency trading always involves buying one currency and selling another, there is no structural bias to the market. Hence, a trader has an equal access to trade in a rising or falling market.
Leverage
100:1 leverage is commonly available from online FX dealers, which substantially exceeds the common 2:1 margin offered by stock brokers. Some Forex Brokers offer higher leverages (with 200:1, traders post $500 margin for a $100,000 position, or 0.5%).
While certainly not for everyone, the substantial leverage available from online currency trading firms is a powerful, moneymaking tool. Rather than merely loading up on risk as many people incorrectly assume, leverage is essential in the Forex market. This is because the average daily percentage move of a major currency is less than 1%, whereas a stock can easily have a 10% price move on any given day.