UNDERSTAND BID & ASK
Bid is an offer made by an investor, trader, or dealer to buy a security or what someone is willing to pay for an asset.
Ask is the price a seller is willing to accept for a security, also known as the offer price.
We feel that an understanding of any quote system is essential to the success of trading. All you need to remember is: The first currency listed first is the base currency and the value of the base currency is always 1.
Major currency pairs are EUR / USD, GBP / USD, USD / JPY, and USD/CHF. For example, a quote of EUR / USD 1.2100 means that one 1 Euro is equal to 1.2100 units of U.S. Dollars. When that number increases, it means the Euro is appreciating while the U.S. Dollar is depreciating and vis versa.
Let's look at another example. USD / JPY is trading at 124.00. It means 1 dollar is equal to 124 units of Japanese Yen. An increase in the number means that U.S. Dollar is appreciating while the Japanese Yen is depreciating and vis versa.
In other words, if a currency quote goes higher, that increases the value of the base currency. A lower quote means the base currency is weakening.
Cross currency pairs are currency pairs that do not involve the U.S. dollar. For example, EUR / JPY at 126.34 means 1 Euro is equal to 126.34 Japanese yen.
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