FXCM Research Team

Uncertainty plays a key role in active trading. A breaking news item, surprise economic fundamental, or geopolitical event may send markets reeling at a moment's notice. Whether one is trading equities, futures, or forex, it is wise to be aware of how unexpected events can impact profitability. However, what happens when an unexpected event prompts a disconnect from the market? While uncommon, systemic failures can make trade execution impossible and…

President Trump's use of Twitter is the subject of voracious debate. Short term market volatility has been attributed to Trump's tweets. Learn more here.

The S&P 500 is probably the most widely followed index that tracks the performance of large-cap American stocks. According to S&P Dow Jones Indices, which owns and manages the index, nearly US$10 trillion of stocks is indexed or benchmarked to the index, which includes 500 of the largest American publicly traded companies and captures about 80% of the total value of the U.S. stock market. The 500 stocks in the…

Probably no other American president has expressed so much public displeasure with his own choice to head the U.S. Federal Reserve as has Donald Trump with Jerome Powell. It actually reached the point that much speculation has arisen as to whether or not he can fire the Fed chair if he wishes. The quick answer seems to be no, but there may be some highly political and difficult means for…

Since its creation in 1973 by the Fed, the trade-weighted U.S. dollar index has been used to track the dollar's value against the currencies of major American trading partners.

Learn more about what constitutes a currency war, which occurs when multiple countries devalue or depreciate their currencies at the same time.

The Tokyo Stock Exchange (TSE) is a subsidiary of the Japan Exchange Group (JPX). It is the leading stock market in Japan and ranks consistently in the top five global equities venues in terms of capitalisation. Prominent listings include Sony and Mitsubishi.

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) is an independent agency of the U.S. federal government. It regulates the futures, options, derivatives and swaps markets. Learn more about how the CFTC functions at FXCM.

Market structure is crucial to successful trading. A critical part of active trading is identifying the state a market is in, be it rotational, trending, consolidating or entering reversal.

The Nikkei 225 is a weighted-average equities index, denominated in Japanese yen. It is viewed as a benchmark for Japan's economic prowess, and you can learn more about how it works in this FXCM Insights guide.

The Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI) Emerging Markets Index is a financial product consisting of mid and large-capitalisation corporate listings located in developing nations. It includes prominent companies from Asia, Middle East, India and South Africa.