Posts tagged: trade

The difference between CFD and futures trading in Singapore

trading possibilitiesBoth CFDs and futures trading are popular investment options among retail traders in Singapore. However, while they may appear to be quite similar in their description of the nature of trade being ‘off the exchange,’ there is one key difference between these two types of financial instruments that would influence your choice on which to use. When it comes to trading derivatives in Singapore, investors are spoilt for choice.

Futures and options, both modern investment instruments worldwide, are available here. However, if you’re new to the world of investing or trading financial securities like futures, you might be confused by the difference between these two derivatives types.

This article explains a contract for difference (CFD) and discusses its risks. It also looks at future contracts and how they differ from a CFD. The article then compares the two financial instruments before concluding with some concluding remarks on which instrument is better suited for an investor given his risk profile.

What is a contract for difference?

A contract difference is a type of derivative product based on the difference between an underlying asset price and its strike price at the point of expiry. For example, if you were to buy a CFD on Apple Inc. (AAPL) with a strike price of $100 per share and AAPL stocks subsequently traded above $110 at expiry, you would be paid the difference of $10 x 100 = $1000 by your broker even though you never actually took ownership of the stock.

If, however, AAPL shares traded below $90 by expiration, then there would be no payout to you as the contract has no value since the share traded is lower than its strike price.

As mentioned earlier, CFDs are derivatives, so there is always counterparty risk involved in trading them.

What is a futures contract?

The main difference between a CFD and a future contract is that the former does not have an expiry date while the latter has. It means there is no counterparty involved in trading futures contracts, unlike in a CFD where your broker is your counterparty.

As such, futures traders are only exposed to minimal risks. This transaction usually takes place on an exchange platform that acts as the intermediary for both parties, assuring performance and payment. It does result in much-reduced counterparty risk. One example of such exchanges would be Singapore Exchange (SGX).

What is the difference between a CFD and a future?

The main difference between a contract for difference and a future contract is that the former does not have an expiry date while the latter has. It means there is no counterparty involved in trading futures contracts, unlike in a CFD where your broker is your counterparty. As such, futures traders are only exposed to minimal risks. This transaction usually takes place on an exchange platform that acts as the intermediary for both parties, assuring performance and payment. It results in much-reduced counterparty risk. One example of such exchanges would be Singapore Exchange (SGX).

In Conclusion

We hope this article has helped you better understand the main differences between futures and CFD trading. If you are looking to trade either of these products, we recommend partnering with a reputable broker who can help guide your decisions as well as provide access to research tools that will make investing in either product more profitable for you.

Be sure not to invest without understanding all the risks associated with both these types of trades before committing any money or taking on debt from margin lending services offered by brokers. With proper education and guidance, there is no reason why anyone should be apprehensive about entering into one form of derivatives trading or another.

If you are interested in investing in CFDs or futures, check out Saxo Bank CFD.

Never let your emotions to trade the market

trading marketHow many times have you placed your trade only to regret the fact you have not decided on your strategy? If we want to know from the traders, we will find that most of the traders do not think before they place the trades. They think as the prices are always going up and down, anything will be good for us. If we place our trades, the price will go up or down and we can make the money. The thing is it does not go as you have planned. You have seen the trend going up but when you place trades, it started to go down and down and down. You close your trades and save your money. This is the result of jumping on the gun. You do not think or prepare a plan what is going to happen when you will take the trades. This article will tell you what this jump on the gun says about the traders. If you can avoid this style, you can place better trades.

Control your emotions

We all know Forex trading is a very profitable business. You can easily earn huge amount of money even after making a small investment. Brokers like Saxo are offering high leverage trading accounts to their retail clients. If you can use the leverage properly you can easily make a huge profit from this market. Sadly, the new investors fail to control their greed in real time trading. They simply ignore the logic and analytical data. The moment they start taking trades based on emotions is the very moment they start losing money. You must learn to control your emotions at any cost or else, becoming a successful trader will become very hard for you.

Follow your system

Everyone needs a valid trading strategy to place their trade in their online trading account. You can easily make a consistent profit from this market even with a 60% win rate. If you lose some trades in a row, consider them as your business cost. Stick to your rules and you will be able to understand the proper procedure of trading. Try to write down the details of the trading plan as it will help you to make a better decision at the complex market condition. Regardless of the condition of the market, never break your rules.

Think before you place trades

Jump on the gun does not say you need to have a gun to trade in Forex. It only says you should analyze the chart, the volatility, make a strategy and think of all the expected results before you are placing trades. It tells you not to place a trade without a strategy. You need to analyze the volatility and trends. If the volatility is good, you need to know if this condition is going to last long. Do not forget you have to overcome the spread that your broker is taking from you. When the traders are placing trades, they forget the spread and they think they will start making a profit with the trend. They do not remember the starting level will be some pips down in the chart and the trends need to be favorable for them to overcome the spread.

Limit your expectation

It is common for the traders to think they will start aiming money like the professionals when they will invest in Forex. It only takes them some trades to realize it is not as easy as they have thought. You need to find the right strategy with the right plan to make money. Most of your trades will be lost because you cannot understand the trend. When you will understand, the good trends will not come. It is a tug of war between your expectation and the result and you should not ump on the gun. If the trend looks good to you, do not place trades without knowing if they can give you profit.

How should you plan for a proper trading method?

money tradingTrading is simple and hard at the same time. It could be either one for you. Or you might experience both while you are in this business. But, if you manage to make a good and simple plan for the growth of your business, it will be very easy for you to maintain your trading performance. With time you can improve your performance and quality of your trading. For that, you must have a basic method of trading. It will be the skeleton for your trading process. And all of the fleshes can be modified according to your preferences. Today we are going to talk about a simple method of trading. Hope you will use this technique for designing your trading approach.

Long lasting trades is first

You might be thinking like a normal business while trading in a marketplace. But here, it is actually the opposite. To make profits, you don’t have to trade too much. If you can trade with efficiency for a long time, it will help you to make a good amount of profit. And the amount would be far better than winning multiple trades. This is the secret of the trading business, to be simple and relaxed. Because with that environment, your head remains sharper than being busy with trades. So, it can think properly and use the strategies in your trade’s plan correctly. And when you can execute a trade correctly and you keep it open for a long time, it will make you a lot of money in the end. So, always try the long trades.

Learning from your mistakes

Learning from your mistake is very hard. But the professional Aussie traders always rely on their past trade to make a decent profit from this market. You might be thinking about the digital journal in the CFD trading industry. Being new to this industry it’s very obvious you will get confused with the long-term outcome of this market. But this is just like your traditional business. You can’t make any real progress unless you trade the market with discipline. To be a disciplined trader you must work really hard. But this is not enough to ensure your profit factors. You must develop the unique skills to learn from your mistakes. Fix your existing issues with the extreme level of care and trade the market with logic. Forget about the big winners even though you have access to high leverage accounts.

Using the daily charts

Before executing any trades, you must observe the condition of the market first. For that, you will have to look at those price charts that are changing in real time. It defines the condition of a market in any current situation. Looking at the charts also have some effects on your trading performance. When you use the smaller time frame charts, it will bother you more than using a longer time frame chart. Because the prices will be frequently changing, you will have to look at them more often. You have to keep up with the market to trade. But, being too busy with chart watching, you might get distracted at the right moment you have to trade. So, you must use longer time frame charts for example at least with 1-hour time span.

Focusing on the position

Timing is necessary for your trades. Otherwise, they might not make good profits. Because the market is not obsolete and it is constantly changing. One minute it could be by your side and the other it can be the opposite side of your trades. So, you must trade with accuracy on time. It is not possible for every trader or every time. But, you must try to improve yourself with time. If you have the focus on timing, one day or another it will get right. Just stay relaxed and look for the right moment to pull the trigger.

Suez Canal Shipping Costs Rise

Suez Canal Shipping CostsSince 1869, the Suez Canal has served as one of the world’s most important waterways, allowing convoys of large freights to travel easily between Asia and Europe without navigating around the African continent. The 193-mile artificial waterway took a decade to build and has seen multiple enlargements over the years. Today the canal supports 8% of the world’s shipping traffic and is used by the world’s largest shipping companies to transport goods. Of course, such convenience comes at a price, and it’s just been announced that the cost of transit on the Suez Canal will now rise by as much as 5%.

The Suez Canal Authority (SCA) in Egypt has implemented the following increases in tolls:

• 5% for ships carrying oil and petroleum products
• 2% for container ships and vessels transporting cars
• 3% for all other ships

Strengthening the Suez

The increase follows a number of recent studies conducted by the SCA, which took a close look at marine traffic on the Suez Canal as well as the waterway’s toll revenues; findings revealed that in 2012, the canal was used by a total of 17 252 ships and 932.43 million tonnes of cargo – ultimately yielding revenues of $5 129 600 000. With the Suez Canal accounting for a significant part of Egypt’s GDP, and a major source of foreign currency, the Government hopes that the toll increases will help to further boost toll revenues and avert a currency crisis. The worldwide effect on trade and shipping traffic remains to be seen in the coming months, but the increase could see more freight owners choosing alternative routes or weighing the cost of the Panama Canal against the Suez.

Rail and Road Links

The Government has also announced that plans are underway to build three tunnels under the canal; two of these 3km long, 12.2m wide) will be used for road links and one longer tunnel (5km long, 12.2m wide) will be dedicated to a rail transport project. This move is part of a larger regional development plan. Hatem Abdel Latif, Egyptian Minister for Transport, told press that the tunnels will contribute to expansion in North Sinai and complete the extension of the coastal road between Rafah and Nuweiba.

As Egypt’s foreign currency reserves begin to dwindle, it is vital that the Government protect this valuable source of foreign income, and look at innovative projects like the Suez Canal rail and road tunnel construction in order to strengthen the country’s economy and trade connections alike.