What is currency trading? I’m sure that you’ve asked yourself this many times. It is a complex process involving the purchase and sale of money from different countries for a profit. Commonly known as foreign exchange, or FOREX, the sale of currencies can greatly alter the strength of a particular country’s economy and currency price. All currencies have a value relative to the value of other world currencies. Thus, any changes in the price of one country’s money will impact on other countries. This can have very serious effects if it incurs a loss of value for that particular country’s money.

So if your friends ask you “what is currency trading?” you can provide them with two answers. There are two main ways that FOREX happens. First, when tourists or visitors to a country enter its borders they must buy some of that country’s money in order to buy things. When they buy the currency, they normally do so at a higher rate than the actual value of the money, and so that country earns a profit. Similarly, when they leave they need to sell any excess currency back to the original country, allowing the traders to make a profit again. The more tourists that come to a country the more able that country is to make money from foreign exchange.

Secondly, there is large scale trading of currency, normally between banks and large lending institutions. In this type of trading, investors look at whether it a particular currency is likely to be strong or weak, and they buy and sell it accordingly. This is called speculation. Often this is based on detailed research into the political climate of a country, and any serious country by country issues. Recently smaller investors and traders have been allowed to participate in this form of trading, but this is relatively new. Now you know the answer to the question “what is currency trading?”

Some simple money saving tips prove to really help some people, and you don’t even have to go to drastic measures to save. The first mistake people make is choosing to bank with the first bank they come across. What you have to do if you want to save cash is choose a bank that respects you and your funds. If you have heating services (under the floor, in the swimming pool, etc) have them cancelled in summer. It is too hot during the summer months to have a heated swim. When you go grocery shopping, make a list before you leave home and stick to the list. Electricity is a problem in South Africa; the costs just keep soaring, so you have to do what you can to keep your electricity bill down.

Switching off the TV when no one is watching, using a gas stove and switching off lights behind you are some simple money saving tips and ideas that are sure to make a difference. Advice is needed in this department because we need to save money wherever we can with the credit crunch we are facing today. The credit crunch might not be such a bad thing after all as it makes it more difficult for you to acquire loans (loans equal debt). Investing in something valuable when you have some extra cash is always a good idea, as then you could receive money back from your investment when you least expect it. But the best advice when you need to save cash is to be wise when it comes to grocery shopping, if you don’t need it, don’t buy it. The same with the heating plans you have, cancel them altogether if you can, they are unnecessary.

If you really can’t afford it, stay away from investing; rather wait until you have some extra money at hand. These are just a few of the ideas you have, there are many more when you are looking for some simple money saving tips.