Aggregate Demand - The sum of government spending, personal consumption expenditures, and business expenditures. Appreciation - A currency is said to ‘appreciate ‘ when it strengthens in price in response to market demand. Arbitrage - The purchase or sale of an instrument and simultaneous taking of an equal and opposite position in a related market, in order to take advantage of small price differentials between markets. Around - Dealer jargon used in quoting when the forward premium/discount is near parity. For example, “two-two around” would translate into 2 points to either side of the present spot. Ask Rate - The rate at which a financial instrument if offered for sale (as in bid/ask spread). Asset Allocation - Investment practice that divides funds among different markets to achieve diversification for risk management purposes and/or expected returns consistent with an investor’s objectives. B
Back Office
- The departments and processes related to the settlement of financial transactions. Balance of Trade - The value of a country’s exports minus its imports.
Bar Charts
- Standard bar charts are commonly used to convey price activity into an easily readable chart. Usually four elements make up a bar chart, the Open, High, Low, and Close for the trading session/time period. A price bar can represent any time frame the user wishes, from 1 minute to 1 month. The total vertical length/height of the bar represents the entire trading range for the period. The top of the bar represents the highest price of the period, and the bottom of the bar represents the lowest price of the period. The Open is represented by a small dash to the left of the bar, and the Close for the session is a small dash to the right of the bar. Base Currency - In general terms, the base currency is the currency in which an investor or issuer maintains its book of accounts. In the FX markets, the US Dollar is normally considered the ‘base’ currency for quotes, meaning that quotes are expressed as a unit of $1 USD per the other currency quoted in the pair. The primary exceptions to this rule are the British Pound, the Euro and the Australian Dollar. Bear Market - A market distinguished by declining prices. Bid Rate - The rate at which a trader is willing to buy a currency