Foreign exchange is a system for dealing in the currencies of other countries. The exchange of one currency for another, or the conversion of one currency into another currency. Foreign exchange also refers to the global market where currencies are traded virtually around the process by which people in different countries pay each other by exchanging different types of money the clock.
We use data on foreign exchange trading from the Bank for International Settlements for the period 1995-2013 to explore the relationship between the international currency system and the evolution of international financial centres. Drawing on existing literature, our conceptual framework suggests that both the system of currencies and that of financial cent res have tendencies towards spatial concentration, but they have limits, and generate overlapping but different geographies. Our empirical analysis shows the forex market as globalist, networked and hierarchical, with a 40% share for the leading centre and currency, a 20% share of the runner-up, and the rest of the market divided among smaller financial centres and currencies.
How Does Foreign Exchange Work?
The market determines the value, also known as an fx시티, of the majority of currencies. Foreign exchange can be as simple as changing one currency for another at a local bank. It can also involve trading currency on the foreign exchange market. For example, a trader is betting a central bank will ease or tighten monetary policy and that one currency will strengthen versus the other.
There will also be a price associated with each pair, such as 1.2569. If this price was associated with the USD/CAD pair it means that it costs 1.2569 CAD to buy one USD. If the price increases to 1.3336, then it now costs 1.3336 CAD to buy one USD. The USD has increased in value (CAD decrease) because it now costs more CAD to buy one USD.
The foreign exchange market isn’t exactly a one-stop shop. There are a whole variety of different avenues that an investor can go through in order to execute forex trades. You can go through different dealers or through different financial centers which use a host of electronic networks.
The U.S. dollar is the most actively traded currency. The most common pairs are the USD versus the euro, Japanese yen, British pound and Swiss franc. Trading pairs that do not include the dollar are referred to as crosses. The most common crosses are the euro versus the pound and yen.
The spot market can be very volatile. Movement in the short term is dominated by technical trading, which focuses on direction and speed of movement. People who focus on technical are often referred to as artists. Long-term currency moves are driven by fundamental factors such as relative interest rates and economic growth.