Accrued interest

The interest deemed to be earned on a security but not yet paid to the investor.

Appreciation

Is when a currency’s value grows stronger.

Arbitrage

The simultaneous purchase and sale of an asset in order to profit from a difference in the price. It is a trade that profits by exploiting price differences of identical or similar financial instruments, on different markets or in different forms.

Ask Rate

The rate at which a trader can buy a currency that is for sale.

Auction

Refers to the public sale of Treasury securities.

Base Currency

The currency in which other currencies are quoted in a pair. Usually the U.S. dollar is considered the ‘Base Currency’.

Bear Market

A market in which prices are declining.

Bid/Ask Spread

The difference between the bid and offer price.

Big Figure

Refers to a term used by dealers and/or brokers. It refers to the first few digits of an exchange rate.

Broker

An individual/firm that bring buyers and sellers together for a fee/commission.

Bull Market

A market in which prices are rising.

Clearing

A term used to refer to a process of settling a trade.

Commission

The fee that is charged by a broker/dealer.

Confirmation

The document that states the terms of a transaction.

Contract

The standard unit of trading.

Cross Rate

The exchange rate between any two currencies that are not of the country in which the currency pair is quoted. For example, in the U.S., a GBP/JPY quote would be considered a Cross Rate. The same quote would not be a Cross Rate in either the U.K. or Japan.

Coupon

This a feature of a bond that denotes the amount of interest due and the date payment will be made.

Currency

A unit of exchange. Any form of money that has been issued by a government/central bank is a currency. Currencies are used as a medium of exchange, i.e. they are used as a basis for trades.

Day Trading

Trades in which positions are opened and closed on the same day.

Dealer

An individual/firm that take one side of a position hoping to make a profit by closing out the position in a following trade with a different trader.

Depreciation

A fall in the value of a currency.

Discount

The amount by which the par value of a security exceeds its purchase price.

Discount Rate

The rate of return, on an annual basis, on Treasury bills held until they mature. The discount rate is expressed in percentage terms and based on a 360-day year.

Foreign Exchange, Forex, FX

The simultaneous purchase or sale of one currency against the purchase or sale of another.

Forward

The predetermined and agreed upon exchange rate for the settling of a transaction at some agreed future date.

Fundamental Analysis

The analysis of economic and political information as it aims to determine future market movements.

Inflation

An economic condition in which the prices of goods rise, hence decreasing the purchasing power of consumers.

Risk

An exposure to the chance of loss.

Roll-Over

A process in which the settlement of a transaction is pushed forward to another date.

Secondary Market

The financial market where securities that were previously issued by the Treasury are bought and sold.

Short Position

A position that increases in value if the market prices decrease.

Spread

Refers to the difference between the bid and offer prices for a currency pair.

Stop Loss Order

An order in which an open position is automatically liquidated at a specific price. Stop Loss Order minimized potential losses if the market moves in the opposite direction of the investor’s position.

Swap

The sale and purchase of a certain amount of a certain currency at a forward exchange rate.

Technical Analysis

An analysis of historical market trends in an effort to forecast future market movements.

Transaction Cost

The cost of making a financial transaction whether it is buying or selling.

Yield

The annual percentage rate of return earned on a bond calculated by dividing the coupon interest rate by its purchase price.