Newbie Forex Question.

Pardon me but I just started following Forex & have couple of basic questions. I would appreciate any feedback.

(1) Is euro/usd traded in 4 digits or 5 digits ?

I mean current price I see using FXCM feed & Ensign Software is :

Bid : 1.21793

Ask :1.21818

So spread is 1.21818 - 1.21793 = 25 pips ? OR 2 pips ?

How do you place your order ? Using 4 didgits or 5 didgits ?

And 1 pip = US $10.00 ?

(2) I use volume charts & it seems FXCM does not have much volume. Barely 50,000 contracts a day.

So the volume is dependant on broker ? If so which broker has the highest volume per day ?

Thanks much.
Scott

 

That spread means 2 pips.

1 pip =10.00 USD.


I'd recommend finding a broker other than FXCM.

 

4th decimal is the full pip.

5th is 10ths of a pip and not always quoted. On Ensign you should be able to set it to only show the 4th place.

 

Thank you both guys.

I use volume charts, so I find more volume helps make better charts.

Do you guys recommend any broker ?

Thanks

 

http://www.investopedia.com/university/forexmarket/forex2.asp
type into search box for any forex questions .....

 

Just what I was looking for.

I am not sure if it would help pick out a broker or would it ?

Thanks.

 

http://www.investopedia.com/articles/forex/08/forex-commission-spread.asp
too many sponsoring brokers so Investopedia won't tell you which. but there are articles to help you to select.

 

GFT or Oanda.

 

i use GFT Forex. but found their Dealbook360 platform takes up too much resources, like 729K in memory usage on WindowsXP. also, there is a no-activity fee if i don't trade for 90 days. otherwise, i liked the 2-3pips spread for majors.

 

I don't mean to critisize you but I don't understand your point of less than 1 mb memory when memory prices are so cheap. What am I missing ?

Just trying to learn a lot from all of you guys & appreciate all the help.

Are you saying it also takes up lots of cpu power too ?

Thanks for explanation in advance.