Forex trading involves buying and selling currencies on the global financial market. It’s the largest and most liquid financial marketplace available, used by banks, businesses, investors, and individual traders alike. Forex is decentralized compared to stock exchanges – its transactions take place electronically rather than being on physical exchanges.

Currency trading was once limited to large institutional investors, hedge funds, and high-net-worth individuals, but thanks to the internet this market is now open to individual traders as well. Now anyone with internet access can participate in buying and selling currencies on the global forex market 24 hours a day – often betting that one currency’s value will increase or decrease relative to another – anticipating price movements correctly can lead to profitful trading strategies.

Major pairs in forex trading are known as majors; these include euro/US dollar (EUR/USD), pound/US dollar (GBP/USD) and Japanese yen/US dollar (JPY/USD). Minor pairs also enjoy considerable trading volume but typically have lower liquidity.

Currency pairs’ exchange rates are quoted in ratio, with one currency acting as the base currency and another serving as its quote currency. For instance, EUR/USD is quoted at 1.1235 which indicates it costs $1.12 to purchase 1 euro on the foreign exchange market. Furthermore, you can purchase or sell currency pairs at either current or historical exchange rates.

All currency trades are conducted on the forex market, an international marketplace where you can buy and sell currencies round the clock, five days a week. Prices for individual currencies are determined by supply and demand – with supply being determined by factors like employment data or GDP figures while demand can be determined by events occurring within its country of origin, or by expectations for economic growth in future.

There are two primary strategies for trading forex – fundamental and technical analysis. Fundamental analysis is better suited for long-term traders who hold positions over an extended period, taking into account economic conditions within each nation as well as global ones.

Technical analysis on the other hand relies on chart patterns that could signal future behavior of currency pairs. All relevant information has already been factored into their valuation, so recognising patterns may help you anticipate their movement in one way or another.

FX prices are driven primarily by news and economic events that influence global confidence or supply and demand of specific currencies, which can have dramatic price shifts within short timeframes, so traders should regularly monitor their trading accounts to stay aware of any sudden price shifts that could happen quickly. Also, as forex trading can be very risky with losses sometimes exceeding deposits, traders must use leverage responsibly while using it responsibly in their trading strategy; there are various governing and independent bodies overseeing forex trading to ensure transparency and accountability in this arena.