Why Currencies?

[wackypete2]

Of course we're also forgetting about slippage on forex plus all the funny business from dodgy brokers.

There is slippage on emini too.
FWIW, I traded US equities for many years before moving to forex and the slippage in equities is much worse than forex, ESPECIALLY during news events.

Peter

 

[Rhody Trader]

In the example you give you'd have to trade 2 FX lots to get to the same tick/pip value, wouldnt that be 2 x 2 pips = $25 at the rates you used?

Following up on Pete, thanks to the wonders of mini and micro lots (and brokers like Oanda that don't even use fixed lots) you don't need to do a 2-lot position.

As for the slippage thing, it's not nearly the issue you may have been lead to believe. EUR/USD is the single most actively traded market in the world. It's a tight market and the spread is often less than the 2 pips I used in my example (with some thanks to pippettes).

 

[VielGeld]

^ Doesn't Oanda give you the shaft if you've been winning too much, though? That's only what I've read...

In any case, it's true that EUR/USD has very tight spreads. It's generally 2 pips or less, which is awesome if you're a short-term trader.

 

[robster970]

I totally argree with you, you get more bang for your buck with futures, not to mention the liquidity is awesome.

+1

I also read somewhere that ES was like crack for traders which made me laugh.

 

[Rhody Trader]

^ Doesn't Oanda give you the shaft if you've been winning too much, though? That's only what I've read...

I have heard and seen no such thing and I've been with them for years. Oanda until recently did zero advertising. They become a top broker strictly by word of mouth, which should tell you a lot about what the vast majority of customers think of them. The one consistent gripe was the limitations of their trading platform, though they now have an MT4 option, so that's eased lately.