Articles on Forex Markets

This article provides a basic introduction to the Forex market. It lists down the various characteristics that are unique to the Forex market and provides a brief summary regarding how they affect the trades that take place.

This article provides a basic explanation for the gold standard. It also contrasts the modern system of freely floating currencies with the gold standard.

This article provides a historical account of money. It explains how money became freely floating currency and therefore how Forex markets came into existence.

This article explains the pros and cons of having a fixed exchange rate regime. It also cites earlier instances where countries have either benefited or have been at a loss because of their currency pegs.

This article lists down some of the most commonly used terms in the Forex market. It also provides a very basic explanation for the same terms.

This article lists down the unique features of the Forex market. It compares Forex trading with trading other financial assets in the light of these features and discusses their risk-return profile.

This article explains how trends affect the Forex market. It explains that trends fluctuate in a particular fashion known as trading cycles. It also provides advice regarding trading in these different cycles.

This article tracks down some of the important factors which influence the determination of exchange rates. It also explains that exchange rates are relative and not absolute.

This article explains the direct and the indirect method of giving Forex quotations. It also explains the nomenclature used for abbreviating currencies as well as conventions related to giving Forex quotations.

This article explains the different types of orders available in the Forex market. It also explains how these different types of orders allow investors to manage the value of their holdings in a 24 by 7 environment!

This article provides a brief look at the advantages and disadvantages of trading in Forex markets. The advantages are mostly related to flexibility whereas the disadvantages are mostly about excessive risk.

This article provides information about how Forex trading courses are conducted. It provides a list of benefits that traders would be missing on if they do not enroll in such a course. It also suggests that online courses would be more preferable if budget or time is a constraint.

This article provides a brief introduction about the 4 major currency pairs in the world. It also provides information regarding how these currency pairs relate to other currencies.

This article provides information about the different types of participants in the Forex market. It also explains their motives for trading currencies as well the quantum of information that they are expected to have.

This article explains about the different types of interventions by Central Banks in the Forex markets. It also explains the merits and demerits of each method and why one method can be preferable to another in a given situation.

This article explains about the dollar yuan peg. It explains how this peg works and why it has been the reason for a major imbalance in the balance of trade between the United States and China.

This article provides information about labor arbitrage and how it is affected by the Forex markets. This issue has been widely debated in the media in the recent past.

This article explains the concept of carry trade and rollovers in great detail. It also lists down the risks that accrue as a result of carry trade and how one can mitigate such risks.

This article provides basic information regarding Special Drawing Rights (SDRs). It also lists down the advantages and disadvantages if a Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) based system were to replace a dollar based system.

This article explains the relationship between interest rates and exchange rates. It explains how this relationship can be complex and provides an easier simplified version.

This article explains why the dollar system provides the United States government with exorbitant privileges. The article also explains why these privileges continue despite there being a lot of resentment in the market.

This article lists down the pros and cons of freely floating currency system. It also compares the same with the pros and cons of the fixed rate system.

This article explains in brief about the currency crisis that was faced by Argentina between 1998 and 2002. It explains the causes as well as effects of this massive crisis which is often compared to the Great Depression.

This article recaps the 1997 currency contagion that took place in Asian countries. It also lists down the causes that led to it as well as the effects that were felt as a result of the crisis.

This article provides an introduction to the concept of currency wars. It lists down the currency wars that have happened in the past and also explains why the present situation could also be viewed as an ongoing currency war.

This article provides a critique of the freely floating exchange rate system. It exposes the flaw that currencies are compared to each other and not to a fixed standard like gold and therefore the exchange rates provide an extremely distorted image of reality.

This article describes the events that lead to Black Wednesday i.e. the speculative attack on the British Pound. It explains how joining the European Exchange Rate Mechanism (EERM) at an overvalued price caused this economic disaster.

This article describes the Russian default of 1998. It enumerates the events that led up to the default of the erstwhile superpower as well as the consequences of the ruble crisis.

This article explains the Mexican crisis of 1994. It explains the causes that led up to this crisis as well as the consequences of that followed as a result of it.

This article describes the South Sea bubble. It explains how the South Sea Company had no underlying business and that it was a Ponzi scheme which was simply dependent on the share price continually rising.

This article provides a historical account of the tulip mania. The tulip mania was the first asset bubble in recorded economic history and provides an interesting case to understand the herd mentality that prevails in the financial markets.

This article discusses the Spanish property bubble that was created between 1990 and 2006. It explains the causes that led to rise in prices till 2006 and the fall in prices post 2008.

The Poseidon bubble was a bubble that rocked the Australian stock market in the 1970’s. This article describes the causes that led to the bubble as well as the outcome of the resultant crash.

This article provides a detailed account of the Madoff scandal. It attempts to explain how Madoff could have possibly pulled off a $50 billion dollar Ponzi scheme in the middle of the most regulated markets in the world!

This article provides details about the dot com bubble of 2001. It also explains the role that the Fed i.e. the United States central bank inadvertently played in creating and bursting the bubble.

This article discussed the Harshad Mehta scandal in detail. It discusses how Harshad Mehta could pull off such a huge scandal and what the motivations of the other parties involved were.

This article provides information about the Ketan Parkeh scam which broke out in 2001. It compares this scam to the Harshad Mehta scam of the previous decade and draws parallels and differences.

This article describes the beginning of the savings and loans crisis, its spread and its end. It also explains how regulators played an important role in expanding the extent of this crisis.

This article describes the rise and fall of Long Term Capital Management (LTCM). It provides a background as to how solely relying on mathematical models for financial decision making caused this massive failure.

The Albanian crisis is unique in the sense that Ponzi schemes became a national affair causing a civil revolution in this country. This article describes the Albanian crisis and examines the causes which led to this situation.

This article provides a brief summary of the Puerto Rican crisis which is often compared to Greece. It explains why Puerto Rico is in massive debt and also explains the severity of the current situation.

This article describes the Israeli bank crisis of 1983. It also explains the reasons which led up to the crisis and the measures taken by the government to contain it.

This article lists down the factors that lead to the Nordic crisis. It also explains the measures taken by the governments and central banks in the region to avert a catastrophe of this magnitude.

This article explains how the Icelandic population allowed its banking system to fail in the 2009 crisis. It also explains how the crisis was large enough to bring the nation to the brink of starvation and how the economy seems to have finally rebounded.

This article explains the Latvian crisis. It explains the cause of the crisis and the various measures taken to overcome the crisis. It also explains how a relatively new fiscal policy called “internal devaluation” helped Latvia economy recover and even thrive after the crisis.

This article traces the history of John Law and the Mississippi Company. It also explains how the bubble was large enough to bankrupt an entire nation and bring it to a brink of revolution.

This article explains why the British economy has defied Brexit predictions. It also explains why Brexit has not been a catastrophe but instead a trigger for economic growth.

This article explains the concept of dollar hegemony. It explains how this hegemony benefits the United States. It also explains how this hegemony could be overthrown and the resultant effects on the economy.

This article debunks the popular myth that devaluation of a currency is good for the nation. It explains how devaluation robs everyone else and benefits only a handful of elites.

This article explains the reasons behind the price rise in Bitcoin. It also explains why most of those reasons are indicative of a bubble rather than a fundamental change.

This article explains why Bitcoin is not a viable alternative to fiat currency. It also explains the reasons why the current rise in Bitcoin prices is nothing more than a speculative asset bubble.

This article compares gold and Bitcoin. The suitability of both these assets as an alternative investment has been evaluated. The major differences between the asset classes have been listed down. The article ends with the conclusion that gold is still the better investment.

This article explains the risks associated with Bitcoin futures trading. The commonly faced risks have been listed and explained in detail for the benefits of investors.

This article explains the details of the Venezuelan cryptocurrency called the petro. It explains what the petro is and then also lists down the major criticisms that have been leveled against the petro.

This article explains the concept of Sukuk. It is then compared with traditional bonds. The similarities and differences between the two instruments are listed in this article.

The effect of manipulation of interest rates by central banks has been discussed in this article. This article explains why even a mere mention of an interest rate hike spooks the investors and causes a stock price crash. It also explains why the boom that was created by lower interest rates was unsustainable in the first place.

This article explains how the Eurozone works? It explains the legal as well as the financial problems that a country is likely to encounter once it tries to exit the Eurozone.

This article tries to figure out whether we are in a stock market bubble as of now. The points in support of and against this argument have been mentioned in this article.

In this article, the five most common causes of stock market crashes have been listed. The article differentiates between crashes and corrections. It also educates investors about the need to keep an eye on these important factors.

This article bifurcates between Hard Brexit and Soft Brexit. It explains the economic pros and cons of using both strategies.

This article introduces the readers to the concept behind the pioneering Cryptographic and Distributed Ledger based Blockchain technology. Using a mix of theory and practical uses of Blockchain, we argue that Blockchain has the potential to be a truly game changing innovation as well as lapsing into yet another tech trend that promised a lot. Further, this article also discusses how Blockchain which is the technology underpinning Bitcoin can lead to Disintermediation.

This article explains how different tax regimes across the world tax Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. It also lists the implications of these tax rules.

This article explains the concept of Bull Run. It defines the way in which Bull Run and Bear Market are measured. It also lists the reason behind the current Bull Run and explains why they are not likely to continue.

This article explains how investments in unlisted equity work. The advantages and disadvantages of investing in this asset class have been explained in this article. Some of the popular methods of investing in unlisted equities have also been explained.

This article explains the concept of short sales. It also explains some of the hazards which are most commonly associated with short selling.

This article explains the concept of development impact bonds. It also explains why these bonds are beneficial to all the parties involved. Lastly, it discusses some of the problems related to development impact bonds.

This article explains the concept of credit enhancement. It mentions the advantages of credit enhancement. Lastly, it also lists the various methods of credit enhancement which are commonly used and explains their pros and cons.

This article explains the concept of ultra-long-term bonds. It also details the use of these bonds by different countries. The case of countries like Austria and Argentina has been discussed in detail. The implications for America have also been listed.

This article explains the process of identifying undervalued and overvalued markets. It also explains how the results should be interpreted.

This article explains the factors which companies consider before they choose to list their stocks on a certain exchange. It also explains some of the differences between the NYSE and NASDAQ.

This article explains why the FAANG stocks are losing value faster than the other stocks. It lists the problems being faced by each of the FAANG companies. It also enumerates the quantum of loss that has been borne by the market in the FAANG crash.

This article explains the concept of the yield curve. It also explains why an inverted yield curve is considered to be a harbinger of recession. Lastly, it also explains why the current sighting of the yield curve may not necessarily lead to a recession.

This article explains the concept of catastrophe bonds. It also explains the different types of catastrophe bonds. Also, it provides detailed information about the risks inherent in catastrophe bonds as well as the type of investors who prefer to take that risk.

This article describes the co-location scam that the National Stock exchange of India has been found guilty of. It explains the modus operandi used in the scam and also lists the repercussions which the NSE has faced as a result of this scam.

This article explains the concept of blue bonds. It explains how funds are raised using blue bonds and what those funds are used for. It also lists the common challenges which are faced by organizations issuing blue bonds. The financial viability of these bonds has also been discussed.

This article uses Economic Theory to explain how the recent market frenzy in GameStop proves that the Balance of Power between Big and Small Investors is shifting. Using the cliché, The Shoe is on the Other Foot, we argue that technology has empowered Small Investors who are paying the biggies back in the same coin. On the other hand, the Status Quoits have won the day for now.

This article explains the concept of a Forex trading system. It also lists down the 5 basic principles that should ideally be used while formulating such a trading system.

This article explains why fundamental analysis does not work in the market. It gives 5 reasons why such an analysis would actually be counterproductive in the Forex markets.