What is buying and selling in forex?
Buying and selling in forex is speculating on the upward and downward price movements of a currency pair, with the hopes of making a profit. All forex trading involves buying one currency and selling another, which is why it is quoted in pairs. You would buy the pair if you expected the base currency to strengthen against the quote currency, and you would sell if you expected it to do the opposite.
The price of a forex pair is how much one unit of the base currency is worth in the quote currency. For example, if the price of GBP/USD is 1.32000, it means that £1 costs $1.32.
Can I sell forex without buying?
Yes, you can sell forex without buying – this is known as short-selling, or going short. Short-selling a currency means that you believe that its price will fall, so you ‘sell’. The more the price falls, the more profit you will make.
For example, assume GBP/USD is trading at 1.3200, with a buy price of 1.3201 and a sell price of 1.3199. You think that the currency price will fall, so you short-sell the pair at 1.3199. If USD strengthens against GBP – meaning fewer US dollars are needed to buy a single pound – of the price of GBP/USD will fall, and you’ll make a profit.
When to buy and sell forex
Knowing when to buy and sell forex depends on many factors, such as market opening times and your FX trading strategy. Many traders agree that the best time to buy and sell currency is generally when the market is most active – when liquidity and volatility are high.
The UK forex market is busiest just after the open of the London session at 8am (UK time). Trading will usually become less liquid at around 10am (UK time), and it will pick up again after the American markets open at around 12pm (UK time).
Aside from market open and close times, you might also decide when best to buy and sell forex according to your individual trading strategy. Three popular FX trading strategies that can be effective ways of determining when to buy and sell currency in forex trading include:
Trend trading
Trend trading is a strategy that involves using technical indicators, such as moving averages or the relative strength index (RSI), to identify the direction of market momentum. In simple terms, it can help to establish whether the forex market is in an uptrend (bullish), a downtrend (bearish) or a sideways trend. While it can cover any timeframe, it is generally used as a mid to long-term trading strategy.