Financial Market Final Collegeforprtg1

KEDIA STOCKS AND COMODITIES PVT .LTD.
1 Page
UNIVERSITY OF MUMBAI
SUMMER PROJECT REORT ON
“FINANCIAL AND CURRENCY MARKET”
PROJECT UNDERTAKEN AT
“KEDIA STOCK & COMMODITIES RESEARCH PVT LTD”
SUBMITTED BY
Mr.VISHAL VINOD GUPTA
Roll No. : 11
Batch (2009-2011)
2
NCRD’S
Page
STERLING INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT STUDIES

Sector-19, Near Seawoods Darave Petrol Pump, Nerul (E),
Navi Mumbai – 400706.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
I hereby take opportunity to thank the people who have helped me a lot during the project work
of two months. The successful accomplishment of this project, involves sincere guidance from
Mr. Ajay Kedia by his excellent guidance, encouragement and patience made possible the
successful completion of project.
I would also like to thank Kedia commodities staff for their sincere guidance, in the
accomplishment of our project It gives me immense pleasure to present the project report on
"Financial and currency Market" for Kedia commodities Pvt. Ltd.
It was altogether a different and wonderful experience to be there in Kedia commodities Pvt. Ltd.
as a summer trainee.I would also like to thank each and every person who has directly or
indirectly contributed to the successful completion of our project work.
3 Page
DECLARATION
I, Gupta Vishal Vinod, of Master of Management studies (semester III) of sterling Institute of
Management studies (sims), hereby declare that I have successfully completed this research
project on "Financial Market and currency Market" as a part of my `summer Internship at Kedia
commodities Pvt. Ltd.'.
The information incorporated in this Research Project is true and original to the best of my
knowledge.
Place:
Date: _________________
4Page
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
This project represents information regarding various investment options available in the
"Financial markets and currency market" and awareness of Kedia commodities Pvt. Ltd.as a
financial service provider. The main objective of the project is to "study the Financial and
currency markets as a whole”.
Other objectives include:
 To conduct a survey for the company to find about the awareness of various investment
options.
 To find out the awareness among working professional's about the awareness of Kedia
commodities Pvt. Ltd. As a Financial service provider.
 To understand the trend of investment among the working professionals.
 To learn the behavior of consumers in respect of the various investment opportunities
available.
This research work will also help in future in understanding the behavior of customer (Especially
the professional's with handsome salary) toward investment. For execution of the project,
methodology adopted is the collection of data through questionnaire, processing and analyzing
the data. The people who were selected for this research are professionals having good salary.
The area of the project work is Kalyan city. Kedia commodities Pvt. Ltd. is the one of the
personalized service providers offering a range of investment services depending on the
customer needs and wants.
5 Page
COMPANY PROFILE
KEDIA COMMODITIES
PVT LTD
The Complete Financial Portal for Indian Commodity, Share and Investment Market - Kedia
Commodities is another venture of the prestigious Kedia group. With their well established
presence from last 22 years in the multifarious facets of the modern Financial services industry
from stock broking, Insurance, to portfolio management services, it is indeed a pleasure for them
to make foray into the commodities market which opens yet another door for them to deliver
their service to their customers. With their expertise in financial services, and an enviable
technological edge, they are all set to bring to us, the pleasure of investing in this growing
market of Commodity, which can touch upon the lives of a vast majority of the population from
the farmer, trader, and investor to the corporate alike. They are confident that the commodity
futures can be a good value addition to our portfolio. The company provides investment,
advisory and brokerage services in Commodities Markets. And most importantly, they offer a
wide reach through Internet network across all part of country and cities.
Commodities market has an existence since the trade begins in World. However the recent
attempt by the Government to permit Multi-commodity National levels exchanges has indeed
given it, a shot in the arm. As a result two exchanges Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX) and
National Commodity and derivatives Exchange (NCDEX) have come into being. These
exchanges, by virtue of their high profile promoters and stakeholders, bundle in themselves,
online trading facilities, robust surveillance measures and a hassle-free settlement system. The
futures contracts available on a wide spectrum of commodities like Gold, Silver, Crude,
Menthol-oil, Ref-Soya oil, Guar seed, Chana, Kapas Khalli etc., provide excellent opportunities
for hedging the risks of the farmers, importers, exporters, traders and large scale consumers.
They also make open an avenue for quality investments in precious metals. The commodities
6
market, as it is not affected by the movements of the stock market or debt market provides
Page
tremendous opportunities for better diversification of risk. Realizing this fact, even mutual funds
are contemplating of entering into this market. Commodities market trading volume in
commodity markets has risen more than seven-fold from levels seen just two years ago, and the
rupees value of futures contracts traded in commodity markets currently exceeds many times the
rupee value of common stocks traded on all Indian stock exchanges. The leverage in trading
commodity markets is impressive. Typically the margin requirement will be as little as 4-8% of
the total cash value of the contract. It is this leverage which is simultaneously the biggest
advantage and greatest danger in futures trading, and is the reason why many otherwise
successful investors have difficulty in mastering these markets for mastering this market also
they are at our service.
Organization chart:
The Kedia commodity is a private ltd company and it has proprietorship.
The members are:
 Mr. Ajay Kedia
 Mr. Vijay Kedia
Benefits given by company:
The company provided various benefits to me
 I got the actual idea of the corporate world.
 I got the knowledge about financial market that how it actually

works.
 Got a brief insight of technicalities of the Financial Market and

7
various factors which influence the market in short and long run.
Page
TABLE OF CONTENT
Sr.no. Topics Page no.
1 Introduction 9
2 Investment Basics 10
3 Short term Financial Option 14
4 Long term financial Options 14
4 Securities 17
1) Segments 24
a) Primary market 25
b) Secondary market 27
5 Stock trading 28
6 Factors influencing price of stock 29
7 Depository 33
8 Clearing, Settlement and Redressal 37
9 Introduction to Currency market 40
10 History of Forex 42
11 Historical event of forex 43
12 Players in currency market 52
8
13 Types of currencies 54
Page
14 Leading Economic Indicators 61

15 Regulatory Frame works 68
16 Conclusion 75
17 Annexure 76
18 Bibiliography 99
INTRODUCTION
Financial Markets
In economics, a financial market is a mechanism that allows people to buy and sell (trade)
financial securities (such as stocks and bonds), commodities (such as precious metals or
agricultural goods), and other fungible items of value at low transaction costs and at prices that
reflect the efficient-market hypothesis.
Both general markets (where many commodities are traded) and specialized markets (where only
one commodity is traded) exist. Markets work by placing many interested buyers and sellers in
one "place", thus making it easier for them to find each other. An economy which relies
primarily on interactions between buyers and sellers to allocate resources is known as a market
economy in contrast either to a command economy or to a non-market economy such as a gift
economy.
In finance, financial markets facilitate:
 The raising of capital (in the capital markets)
 The transfer of risk (in the derivatives markets)
9

Page
International trade (in the currency markets)

and are used to match those who want capital to those who have it.
Typically a borrower issues a receipt to the lender promising to pay back the capital. These
receipts are securities which may be freely bought or sold. In return for lending money to the
borrower, the lender will expect some compensation in the form of interest or dividends. In
mathematical finance, the concept of a financial market is defined in terms of a continuous-time
Brownian.
Investment Basics
The money you earn is partly spent and the rest saved for meeting future expenses. Instead of
keeping the savings idle you may like to use savings in order to get return on it in the future. This
is called Investment.
10Page
Figure 1
One needs to invest to:
1. earn return on your idle resources
2. generate a specified sum of money for a specific goal in life
3. make a provision for an uncertain future

11
One of the important reasons why one needs to invest wisely is to meet the cost of Inflation.
Page
Inflation is the rate at which the cost of living increases. The cost of living is simply what it costs
to buy the goods and services you need to live. Inflation causes money to lose value because it
will not buy the same amount of a good or a service in the future as it does now or did in the
past. For example, if there was a 6% inflation rate for the next 20 years, a Rs. 100 purchase today
would cost Rs. 321 in 20 years. This is why it is important to consider inflation as a factor in any
long-term investment strategy. Remember to look at an investment's 'real' rate of return, which is
the return after inflation. The aim of investments should be to provide a return above the
inflation rate to ensure that the investment does not decrease in value. For example, if the annual
inflation rate is 6%, then the investment will need to earn more than 6% to ensure it increases in
value. If the after-tax return on your investment is less than the inflation rate, then your assets
have actually decreased in value; that is, they won't buy as much today as they did last year.
The three golden rules for all investors are:
1. Invest early
2. Invest regularly
3. Invest for long term and not short term
Meaning of Interest and Factors determining Rates of Interest:

When we borrow money, we are expected to pay for using it – this is known as Interest. Interest
is an amount charged to the borrower for the privilege of using the lender’s money. Interest is
usually calculated as a percentage of the principal balance (the amount of money borrowed). The
percentage rate may be fixed for the life of the loan, or it may be variable, depending on the
12
terms of the loan.

Page
“India has the third largest economy in the world measured by

purchasing power parity.”
Factors determining interest rates:

When we talk of interest rates, there are different types of interest rates - rates that banks offer to
their depositors, rates that they lend to their borrowers, the rate at which the Government
borrows in the Bond/Government Securities market, rates offered to investors in small savings
schemes like NSC, PPF, rates at which companies issue fixed deposits etc.
The factors which govern these interest rates are mostly economy related and are commonly
referred to as macroeconomic factors. Some of these factors are:
 Demand for money
 Level of Government borrowings
 Supply of money
 Inflation rate
 The Reserve Bank of India and the Government policies which determine some of the
variables mentioned above.
One can invest in:
 Physical assets like real estate, gold/ jewellery, commodities etc and/or
 Financial assets such as fixed deposits with banks, small saving instruments with post
offices, insurance/provident/pension fund etc or securities market related instruments like shares,
bonds, debentures etc.
13Page
“1993 - The year the first ETF was introduced tracking the S&P 500”
Various Short-term financial options available for Investment:

Broadly speaking, savings bank account, money market/liquid funds and fixed deposits with
banks may be considered as short-term financial investment options:
14
 Savings Bank Account is often the first banking product people use, which offers low
interest (4%-5% p.a.), making them only marginally better than fixed deposits.
Page
 Money Market or Liquid Funds are a specialized form of mutual funds that invest in
extremely short-term fixed income instruments and thereby provide easy liquidity. Unlike most
mutual funds, money market funds are primarily oriented towards protecting your capital and
then, aim to maximize returns. Money market funds usually yield better returns than savings
accounts, but lower than bank fixed deposits.
 Fixed Deposits with Banks are also referred to as term deposits and minimum
investment period for bank FDs is 30 days. Fixed Deposits with banks are for investors with low
risk appetite, and may be considered for 6-12 months investment period as normally interest on
less than 6 months bank FDs is likely to be lower than money market fund returns.
Various Long-term financial options available for Investment:

 Post Office Savings:
Post Office Monthly Income Scheme is a low risk saving instrument, which can be availed
through any post office. It provides an interest rate of 8% per annum, which is paid monthly.
Minimum amount, which can be invested, is Rs. 1,000/- and additional investment in multiples
of 1,000/-. Maximum amount is Rs. 3, 00,000/- (if Single) or Rs. 6, 00,000/- (if held jointly)
during a year. It has a maturity period of 6 years. Premature withdrawal is permitted if deposit is
more than one year old. A deduction of 5% is levied from the principal amount if withdrawn
prematurely.
 Public Provident Fund:
A long term savings instrument with a maturity of 15 years and interest payable at 8% per annum
compounded annually. A PPF account can be opened through a nationalized bank at anytime
15
during the year and is open all through the year for depositing money. Tax benefits can be
Page
availed for the amount invested and interest accrued is tax-free. A withdrawal is permissible
every year from the seventh financial year of the date of opening of the account and the amount
of withdrawal will be limited to 50% of the balance at credit at the end of the 4th year
immediately preceding the year in which the amount is withdrawn or at the end of the preceding
year whichever is lower the amount of loan if any.
 Company Fixed Deposits:

These are short-term (six months) to medium-term (three to five years) borrowings by companies
at a fixed rate of interest which is payable monthly, quarterly, semiannually or annually. They
can also be cumulative fixed deposits where the entire principal along with the interest is paid at
the end of the loan period. The rate of interest varies between 6-9% per annum for company FDs.
The interest received is after deduction of taxes.
 Bonds:
It is a fixed income (debt) instrument issued for a period of more than one year with the purpose
of raising capital. The central or state government, corporations and similar institutions sell
bonds. A bond is generally a promise to repay the principal along with a fixed rate of interest on
a specified date, called the Maturity Date.
 Mutual Funds:
These are funds operated by an investment company which raises money from the public and
invests in a group of assets (shares, debentures etc.), in accordance with a stated set of objectives.
It is a substitute for those who are unable to invest directly in equities or debt because of
16
resource, time or knowledge constraints. Benefits include professional money management,

Page
buying in small amounts and diversification. Mutual fund units are issued and redeemed by the
Fund Management Company based on the fund's net asset value (NAV), which is determined at
the end of each trading session. NAV is calculated as the value of all the shares held by the fund,
minus expenses, divided by the number of units issued. Mutual Funds are usually long term
investment vehicle though there some categories of mutual funds, such as money market mutual
funds which are short term instruments.
“In 2005, India liberalized its foreign direct investments policy to allow
up to a 100% foreign investment stake in India based ventures.”
“80% - the amount of capitalization represented by the FTSE 100 on

the whole London Stock Exchange.”
Types of Financial Market:
Capital market
A capital market is a market for securities (debt or equity), where business enterprises
17
(companies) and governments can raise long-term funds. It is defined as a market in which
Page
money is provided for periods longer than a year, as the raising of short-term funds takes place
on other markets (e.g., the money market). The capital market includes the stock market (equity
securities) and the bond market (debt). Financial regulators, such as the UK's Financial Services
Authority (FSA) or the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), oversee the capital
markets in their designated jurisdictions to ensure that investors are protected against fraud,
among other duties.
Capital markets may be classified as primary markets and secondary markets. In primary
markets, new stock or bond issues are sold to investors via a mechanism known as underwriting.
In the secondary markets, existing securities are sold and bought among investors or traders,
usually on a securities exchange, over-the-counter, or elsewhere.
Stock market
A stock market or equity market is a public market (a loose network of economic transactions,
not a physical facility or discrete entity) for the trading of company stock and derivatives at an
agreed price; these are securities listed on a stock exchange as well as those only traded
privately.
The size of the world stock market was estimated at about $36.6 trillion US at the beginning of
October 2008.The total world derivatives market has been estimated at about $791 trillion face
or nominal value, 11 times the size of the entire world economy. The value of the derivatives
market, because it is stated in terms of notional values, cannot be directly compared to a stock or
a fixed income security, which traditionally refers to an actual value. Moreover, the vast majority
of derivatives 'cancel' each other out (i.e., a derivative 'bet' on an event occurring is offset by a
comparable derivative 'bet' on the event not occurring). Many such relatively illiquid securities
are valued as marked to model, rather than an actual market price.
The stocks are listed and traded on stock exchanges which are entities of a corporation or mutual
organization specialized in the business of bringing buyers and sellers of the organizations to a
18
listing of stocks and securities together. The largest stock market in the United States, by market
Page
cap is the New York Stock Exchange, NYSE and while in Canada, it is the Toronto Stock
Exchange. Major European examples of stock exchanges include the London Stock Exchange,
Paris Bourse, and the Deutsche Börse. Asian examples include the Tokyo Stock Exchange, the
Hong Kong Stock Exchange and the Bombay Stock Exchange . In Latin America, there are such
exchanges as the BM&F Bovespa and the BMV.
Bond market
The bond market (also known as the debt, credit, or fixed income market) is a financial
market where participants buy and sell debt securities, usually in the form of bonds. As of 2009,
the size of the worldwide bond market (total debt outstanding) is an estimated $82.2 trillion, of
which the size of the outstanding U.S. bond market debt was $31.2 trillion according to BIS (or
alternatively $34.3 trillion according to SIFMA).
Nearly all of the $822 billion average daily trading volume in the U.S. bond market takes place
between broker-dealers and large institutions in a decentralized, over-the-counter (OTC) market.
However, a small number of bonds, primarily corporate, are listed on exchanges.
References to the "bond market" usually refer to the government bond market, because of its
size, liquidity, lack of credit risk and, therefore, sensitivity to interest rates. Because of the
inverse relationship between bond valuation and interest rates, the bond market is often used to
indicate changes in interest rates or the shape of the yield curve.
Commodity markets
Commodity markets are markets where raw or primary products are exchanged. These raw
19
commodities are traded on regulated commodities exchanges, in which they are bought and sold
Page
in standardized contracts.
This article focuses on the history and current debates regarding global commodity markets. It
covers physical product (food, metals and electricity) markets but not the ways that services,
including those of governments, nor investment, nor debt, can be seen as a commodity. Articles
on reinsurance markets, stock markets, bond markets and currency markets cover those concerns
separately and in more depth. One focus of this article is the relationship between simple
commodity money and the more complex instruments offered in the commodity markets.
Money Market
The money market is a component of the financial markets for assets involved in short-term
borrowing and lending with original maturities of one year or shorter time frames. Trading in the
money markets involves Treasury bills, commercial paper, bankers' acceptances, certificates of
deposit, federal funds, and short-lived mortgage- and asset-backed securities. It provides liquidity
funding for the global financial system.
Derivatives Market
The derivatives market is the financial market for derivatives, financial instruments like futures
contracts or options, which are derived from other forms of assets.
The market can be divided into two, that for exchange-traded derivatives and that for over-the-
counter derivatives. The legal nature of these products is very different as well as the way they
are traded, though many market participants are active in both.
Insurance
20
Insurance, in law and economics, is a form of risk management primarily used to hedge against
Page
the risk of a contingent, uncertain loss. Insurance is defined as the equitable transfer of the risk of
a loss, from one entity to another, in exchange for payment. An insurer is a company selling the
insurance; an insured or policyholder is the person or entity buying the insurance policy. The
insurance rate is a factor used to determine the amount to be charged for a certain amount of
insurance coverage, called the premium. Risk management, the practice of appraising and
controlling risk, has evolved as a discrete field of study and practice.
The transaction involves the insured assuming a guaranteed and known relatively small loss in
the form of payment to the insurer in exchange for the insurer's promise to compensate
(indemnify) the insured in the case of a large, possibly devastating loss. The insured receives a
contract called the insurance policy which details the conditions and circumstances under which
the insured will be compensated.
Foreign exchange market
The foreign exchange market (forex, FX, or currency market) is a worldwide decentralized
over-the-counter financial market for the trading of currencies. Financial centers around the
world function as anchors of trading between a wide range of different types of buyers and
sellers around the clock, with the exception of weekends. The foreign exchange market
determines the relative values of different currencies.
The primary purpose of the foreign exchange market is to assist international trade and
investment, by allowing businesses to convert one currency to another currency. For example, it
permits a US business to import European goods and pay Euros, even though the business's
income is in US dollars. It also supports speculation, and facilitates the carry trade, in which
investors borrow low-yielding currencies and lend (invest in) high-yielding currencies, and
which (it has been claimed) may lead to loss of competitiveness in some countries.
In a typical foreign exchange transaction a party purchases a quantity of one currency by paying
a quantity of another currency. The modern foreign exchange market started forming during the
21
1970s when countries gradually switched to floating exchange rates from the previous exchange
Page
rate regime, which remained fixed as per the Bretton Woods system.
Stock Exchange:
The Securities Contract (Regulation) Act, 1956 [SCRA] defines ‘Stock Exchange’ as any body
of individuals, whether incorporated or not, constituted for the purpose of assisting, regulating or
controlling the business of buying, selling or dealing in securities. Stock exchange could be a
regional stock exchange whose area of operation/jurisdiction is specified at the time of its
recognition or national exchanges, which are permitted to have nationwide trading since
inception. NSE was incorporated as a national stock exchange.
Equity/Share:
Total equity capital of a company is divided into equal units of small denominations, each called
a share. For example, in a company the total equity capital of Rs 2,00,00,000 is divided into
20,00,000 units of Rs 10 each. Each such unit of Rs 10 is called a Share. Thus, the company then
is said to have 20,00,000 equity shares of Rs 10 each. The holders of such shares are members of
the company and have voting rights.
Debt Instrument:
Debt instrument represents a contract whereby one party lends money to another on pre-
determined terms with regards to rate and periodicity of interest, repayment of principal amount
by the borrower to the lender. In the Indian securities markets, the term ‘bond’ is used for debt
instruments issued by the Central and State governments and public sector organizations and the
term ‘debenture’ is used for instruments issued by private corporate sector.
22
Derivative:
Page
Derivative is a product whose value is derived from the value of one or more basic variables,
called underlying. The underlying asset can be equity, index, foreign exchange (forex),
commodity or any other asset. Derivative products initially emerged as hedging devices against
fluctuations in commodity prices and commodity-linked derivatives remained the sole form of
such products for almost three hundred years. The financial derivatives came into spotlight in
post-1970 period due to growing instability in the financial markets. However, since their
emergence, these products have become very popular and by 1990s, they accounted for about
two thirds of total transactions in derivative products.
Mutual Fund:
A Mutual Fund is a body corporate registered with SEBI (Securities Exchange Board of India)
that pools money from individuals/corporate investors and invests the same in a variety of
different financial instruments or securities such as equity shares, Government securities, Bonds,
debentures etc.
Mutual funds can thus be considered as financial intermediaries in the investment business that
collect funds from the public and invest on behalf of the investors. Mutual funds issue units to
the investors. The appreciation of the portfolio or securities in which the mutual fund has
invested the money leads to an appreciation in the value of the units held by investors.
Index:
An Index shows how a specified portfolio of share prices is moving in order to give an indication
of market trends. It is a basket of securities and the average price movement of the basket of
securities indicates the index movement, whether upwards or downwards.
23
Depository:
Page
A depository is like a bank wherein the deposits are securities (viz. shares, debentures, bonds,
government securities, units etc.) in electronic form.
Dematerialization:
Dematerialization is the process by which physical certificates of an investor are converted to an
equivalent number of securities in electronic form and credited to the investor’s account with his
Depository Participant (DP).
SECURITIES
The definition of ‘Securities’ as per the Securities Contracts Regulation Act (SCRA), 1956,
includes instruments such as shares, bonds, scrips, stocks or other marketable securities of
similar nature in or of any incorporate company or body corporate, government securities,
derivatives of securities, units of collective investment scheme, interest and rights in securities,
security receipt or any other instruments so declared by the Central Government.
Securities one can invest in:

 Shares
 Government Securities
 Derivative products
 Units of Mutual Funds etc are some of the securities investors in the securities market can
invest in.
24
Page
Segments of Securities Market:

25
The securities market has two interdependent segments:

Page
1. The primary (new issues) market and
2. The secondary market.

PRIMARY MARKET:
The primary market provides the channel for sale of new securities. Primary market provides
opportunity to issuers of securities; Government as well as corporate, to raise resources to meet
their requirements of investment and/or discharge some obligation.
They may issue the securities at face value, or at a discount/premium and these securities may
take a variety of forms such as equity, debt etc. They may issue the securities in domestic market
and/or international market.
The nominal or stated amount (in Rs.) assigned to a security by the issuer. For shares, it is the
original cost of the stock shown on the certificate; for bonds, it is the amount paid to the holder at
maturity. Also known as par value or simply par. For an equity share, the face value is usually a
very small amount (Rs. 5, Rs. 10) and does not have much bearing on the price of the share,
which may quote higher in the market, at Rs. 100 or Rs. 1000 or any other price. For a debt
security, face value is the amount repaid to the investor when the bond matures (usually,
Government securities and corporate bonds have a face value of Rs. 100). The price at which the
security trades depends on the fluctuations in the interest rates in the economy.
Issue of Shares:
Most companies are usually started privately by their promoter(s). However, the promoters’
capital and the borrowings from banks and financial institutions may not be sufficient for setting
up or running the business over a long term. So companies invite the public to contribute towards
the equity and issue shares to individual investors. The way to invite share capital from the
26
public is through a ‘Public Issue’. Simply stated, a public issue is an offer to the public to
Page
subscribe to the share capital of a company. Once this is done, the company allots shares to the
applicants as per the prescribed rules and regulations laid down by SEBI.
What are the different kinds of issues?
Primarily, issues can be classified as a Public, Rights or Preferential issues

(Also known as private placements). While public and rights issues involve a
detailed procedure, private placements or preferential issues are relatively
simpler. The classification of issues is illustrated below:
Initial Public Offering (IPO) is when an unlisted company makes either a

fresh issue of securities or an offer for sale of its existing securities or both
for the first time to the public. This paves way for listing and trading of the
issuer’s securities.
A follow on public offering (Further Issue) is when an already listed

company makes either a fresh issue of securities to the public or an offer for
sale to the public, through an offer document.
Rights Issue is when a listed company which proposes to issue fresh

securities to its existing shareholders as on a record date. The rights are
normally offered in a particular ratio to the number of securities held prior to
the issue. This route is best suited for companies who would like to raise
capital without diluting stake of its existing shareholders.
A Preferential issue is an issue of shares or of convertible securities by

listed companies to a select group of persons under Section 81 of the
Companies Act, 1956 which is neither a rights issue nor a public issue. This
is a faster way for a company to raise equity capital. The issuer company
has to comply with the Companies Act and the requirements contained in the Chapter pertaining to
preferential allotment in SEBI guidelines which inter-alia include pricing, disclosures in notice etc.
.
“India has the tenth largest economy in the world in US dollar
27
exchange-rate terms”.
Page
Listing of Securities:
Listing means admission of securities of an issuer to trading privileges (dealings) on a stock exchange
through a formal agreement. The prime objective of admission to dealings on the exchange is to
provide liquidity and marketability to securities, as also to provide a mechanism for effective control
and supervision of trading.
Delisting of securities:
The term ‘Delisting of securities’ means permanent removal of securities of a listed company from a
stock exchange. As a consequence of delisting, the securities of that company would no longer be
traded at that stock exchange.
SECONDARY MARKET:
Secondary market refers to a market where securities are traded after being initially offered to the
public in the primary market and/or listed on the Stock Exchange. Majority of the trading is done in the
secondary market. Secondary market comprises of equity markets and the debt markets.
For the general investor, the secondary market provides an efficient platform for trading of his
securities. For the management of the company,
Secondary equity markets serve as a monitoring and control conduit—by facilitating value-enhancing
control activities, enabling implementation of incentive-based management contracts, and aggregating
information (via price discovery) that guides management decisions.
Stock Exchange:
The stock exchanges in India, under the overall supervision of the regulatory authority, the Securities
and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), provide a trading platform, where buyers and sellers can meet to
transact in securities. The trading platform provided by NSE is an electronic one and there is no need
for buyers and sellers to meet at a physical location to trade. They can trade through the computerized
28
trading screens available with the NSE trading members or the internet based trading facility provided
Page
by the trading members of NSE.
STOCK TRADING:
Screen Based Trading:

The trading on stock exchanges in India used to take place through open outcry without use of
information technology for immediate matching or recording of trades. This was time consuming and
inefficient. This imposed limits on trading volumes and efficiency. In order to provide efficiency,
liquidity and transparency, NSE introduced a nationwide, on-line, fully automated screen based trading
system (SBTS) where a member can punch into the computer the quantities of a security and the price
at which he would like to transact, and the transaction is executed as soon as a matching sale or buy
order from a counter party is found.
NEAT:
NSE is the first exchange in the world to use satellite communication technology for trading. Its trading
system, called National Exchange for Automated Trading (NEAT), is a state of-the-art client server
based application. At the server end all trading information is stored in an in memory database to
achieve minimum response time and maximum system availability for users. It has uptime record of
99.7%. For all trades entered into NEAT system, there is uniform response time of less than one
second.
Contract Note:
Contract Note is a confirmation of trades done on a particular day on behalf of the client by a trading
member. It imposes a legally enforceable relationship between the client and the trading member with
respect to purchase/sale and settlement of trades. It also helps to settle disputes/claims between the
investor and the trading member. It is a prerequisite for filing a complaint or arbitration proceeding
against the trading member in case of a dispute. A valid contract note should be in the prescribed form,
contain the details of trades, stamped with requisite value and duly signed by the authorized signatory.
29
Contract notes are kept in duplicate, the trading member and the client should keep one copy each.
Page
After verifying the details contained therein, the client keeps one copy and returns the second copy to
the trading member duly acknowledged by him.
Factors Influencing Price of a Stock:

Broadly there are two factors:
(1) stock specific and
(2) market specific.
The stock-specific factor is related to people’s expectations about the company, its future earnings
capacity, financial health and management, level of technology and marketing skills.
The market specific factor is influenced by the investor’s sentiment towards the stock market as a
whole. This factor depends on the environment rather than the performance of any particular company.
Events favorable to an economy, political or regulatory environment like high economic growth,
friendly budget, stable government etc. can fuel euphoria in the investors, resulting in a boom in the
market. On the other hand, unfavorable events like war, economic crisis, communal riots, minority
government etc. depress the market irrespective of certain companies performing well. However, the
effect of market-specific factor is generally short-term. Despite ups and downs, price of a stock in the
long run gets stabilized based on the stock specific factors. Therefore, a prudent advice to all investors
is to analyze and invest and not speculate in shares.
Growth Stocks:
In the investment world we come across terms such as Growth stocks, Value stocks etc. Companies,
whose potential for growth in sales and earnings are excellent, are growing faster than other companies
in the market or other stocks in the same industry are called the Growth Stocks. These companies
usually pay little or no dividends and instead prefer to reinvest their profits in their business for further
expansions.
Value Stocks:
30
The task here is to look for stocks that have been overlooked by other investors and which may have a
Page
‘hidden value’. These companies may have been beaten down in price because of some bad event, or
may be in an industry that's not fancied by most investors. However, even a company that has seen its
stock price decline still has assets to its name - buildings, real estate, inventories, subsidiaries, and so
on. Many of these assets still have value, yet that value may not be reflected in the stock's price. Value
investors look to buy stocks that are undervalued, and then hold those stocks until the rest of the market
realizes the real value of the company's assets. The value investors tend to purchase a company's stock
usually based on relationships between the current market price of the company and certain business
fundamentals. They like P/E ratio being below a certain absolute limit; dividend yields above a certain
absolute limit; Total sales at a certain level relative to the company's market capitalization, or market
value etc.
Bid and Ask price:

The ‘Bid’ is the buyer’s price. It is this price that you need to know when you have to sell a stock. Bid
is the rate/price at which there is a ready buyer for the stock, which you intend to sell.
The ‘Ask’ (or offer) is what you need to know when you're buying i.e. this is the rate/ price at which
there is seller ready to sell his stock. The seller will sell his stock if he gets the quoted “Ask’ price. If an
investor looks at a computer screen for a quote on the stock of say XYZ Ltd, it might look something
like this:
Bid (Buy side) Ask (Sell side)

______________________________________________________
Qty. Price (Rs.) Qty. Price (Rs.)
_______________________________________________________
1000 50.25 50.35 2000
500 50.10 50.40 1000
550 50.05 50.50 1500
2500 50.00 50.55 3000
1300 49.85 50.65 1450
31
________________________________________________________
Page
5850 8950
________________________________________________________
Here, on the left-hand side after the Bid quantity and price, whereas on the right hand side we find the
Ask quantity and prices. The best Buy (Bid) order is the order with the highest price and therefore sits
on the first line of the Bid side (1000 shares @ Rs. 50.25). The best Sell (Ask) order is the order with
the lowest sell price (2000 shares @ Rs. 50.35). The difference in the price of the best bid and ask is
called as the Bid-Ask spread and often is an indicator of liquidity in a stock. The narrower the
difference the more liquid or highly traded is the stock.
Portfolio:
A Portfolio is a combination of different investment assets mixed and matched for the purpose of
achieving an investor's goal(s). Items that are considered a part of your portfolio can include any asset
you own-from shares, debentures, bonds, mutual fund units to items such as gold, art and even real
estate etc. However, for most investors a portfolio has come to signify an investment in financial
instruments like shares, debentures, fixed deposits, mutual fund units.
Debt Investment:
Debt instrument represents a contract whereby one party lends money to another on pre-determined
terms with regards to rate and periodicity of interest, repayment of principal amount by the borrower to
the lender.
In Indian securities markets, the term ‘bond’ is used for debt instruments issued by the Central and
State governments and public sector organizations and the term ‘debenture’ is used for instruments
issued by private corporate sector.
Derivatives:
Forwards:
A forward contract is a customized contract between two entities, where settlement takes place on a
32
specific date in the future at today’s pre-agreed price.

Page
Futures:
A futures contract is an agreement between two parties to buy or sell an asset at a certain time in the
future at a certain price. Futures contracts are special types of forward contracts in the sense that the
former are standardized exchange-traded contracts, such as futures of the Nifty index.
Options:
An Option is a contract which gives the right, but not an obligation, to buy or sell the underlying at a
stated date and at a stated price. While a buyer of an option pays the premium and buys the right to
exercise his option, the writer of an option is the one who receives the option premium and therefore
obliged to sell/buy the asset if the buyer exercises it on him. Options are of two types - Calls and Puts
options:
‘Calls’ give the buyer the right but not the obligation to buy a given quantity of the underlying asset, at
a given price on or before a given future dates.
‘Puts’ give the buyer the right, but not the obligation to sell a given quantity of underlying asset at a
given price on or before a given future date.
“Presently, at NSE futures and options are traded on the Nifty, CNX IT, BANK Nifty and 116 single
stocks”
.
Warrants:
Options generally have lives of up to one year. The majority of options traded on exchanges have
maximum maturity of nine months. Longer dated options are called Warrants and are generally traded
over-the counter.
33
“2008 - The year oil reached $100 a barrel”

Page
Depository:
A Depository can be compared with a bank, which holds the funds for depositors. An analogy between
a bank and a depository may be drawn as follows:
BANK DEPOSITORY
Holds funds in an account Hold securities in an account
Facilitates transfers without Transfers securities between

having to handle money accounts on the instruction of the
Account holder.
Facilitates safekeeping of Facilitates transfers of ownership

Money without having to handle securities.
Transfers funds between Facilitates safekeeping of shares.

accounts on the instruction of
the account holder
There are two depositories in India which provide dematerialization of securities. The National
Securities Depository Limited (NSDL) and Central Depository Services (India) Limited (CDSL).
34Page
MUTUAL FUNDS:
Securities Exchange Board of India (SEBI) is the regulatory body for all the mutual funds. All the
mutual funds must get registered with SEBI.
The benefits of investing in Mutual Funds:

There are several benefits from investing in a Mutual Fund:
Small investments: Mutual funds help you to reap the benefit of returns by a portfolio spread across a
wide spectrum of companies with small investments.
Professional Fund Management: Professionals having considerable expertise, experience and

resources manage the pool of money collected by a mutual fund. They thoroughly analyze the markets
and economy to pick good investment opportunities.
Spreading Risk: An investor with limited funds might be able to invest in only one or two
stocks/bonds, thus increasing his or her risk. However, a mutual fund will spread its risk by investing a
number of sound stocks or bonds. A fund normally invests in companies across a wide range of
industries, so the risk is diversified.
Transparency: Mutual Funds regularly provide investors with information on the value of their
investments. Mutual Funds also provide complete portfolio disclosure of the investments made by
various schemes and also the proportion invested in each asset type.
Choice: The large amount of Mutual Funds offer the investor a wide variety to choose from. An
investor can pick up a scheme depending upon his risk/ return profile.
35
Regulations: All the mutual funds are registered with SEBI and they function within the provisions of
Page
strict regulation designed to protect the interests of the investor.
Entry/Exit Load:
A Load is a charge, which the mutual fund may collect on entry and/or exit from a fund. A load is
levied to cover the up-front cost incurred by the mutual fund for selling the fund. It also covers one
time processing costs.
Some funds do not charge any entry or exit load. These funds are referred to as ‘No Load Fund’. Funds
usually charge an entry load ranging between 1.00% and 2.00%. Exit loads vary between 0.25% and
2.00%. For e.g. Let us assume an investor invests Rs. 10,000/- and the current NAV is Rs.13/-. If the
entry load levied is 1.00%, the price at which the investor invests is Rs.13.13 per unit. The investor
receives 10000/13.13 = 761.6146 units. (Note that units are allotted to an investor based on the amount
invested and not on the basis of no. of units purchased).
Let us now assume that the same investor decides to redeem his 761.6146 units. Let us also assume that
the NAV is Rs 15/- and the exit load is 0.50%. Therefore the redemption price per unit works out to Rs.
14.925. The investor therefore receives 761.6146 x 14.925 = Rs.11367.10.
Stock Split:
A stock split is a corporate action which splits the existing shares of a particular face value into smaller
denominations so that the number of shares increase, however, the market capitalization or the value of
shares held by the investors post split remains the same as that before the split. For e.g. If a company
has issued 1, 00,00,000 shares with a face value of Rs. 10 and the current market price being Rs. 100, a
2-for-1 stock split would reduce the face value of the shares to 5 and increase the number of the
company’s outstanding shares to 2,00,00,000, (1,00,00,000*(10/5)).
Consequently, the share price would also halve to Rs. 50 so that the market capitalization or the value
shares held by an investor remains unchanged. It is the same thing as exchanging a Rs. 100 note for
two Rs. 50 notes; the value remains the same.
36
Page
Pre-Split Post-Split
2-for-1 Split
No. of shares 100 mill. 200 mill.
Share Price Rs. 40 Rs. 20
Market Cap.
Rs. 4000 mill. Rs. 4000 mill.

4-for-1
No. of shares 100 mill. 400 mill.
Share Price Rs. 40 Rs. 10
Market Cap. Rs. 4000 mill. Rs. 4000 mill.
Classification of Issues:
37Page
American Depository Receipt:

An American Depositary Receipt ("ADR") is a physical certificate evidencing ownership of
American Depositary Shares ("ADSs"). The term is often used to refer to the ADSs themselves.
An American Depositary Share ("ADS") is a U.S. dollar denominated form of equity ownership
in a non-U.S. company. It represents the foreign shares of the company held on deposit by a
custodian bank in the company’s home country and carries the corporate and economic rights of
the foreign shares, subject to the terms specified on the ADR certificate. One or several ADSs
can be represented by a physical ADR certificate. The terms ADR and ADS are often used
interchangeably. ADSs provide U.S. investors with a convenient way to invest in overseas
securities and to trade non-U.S. securities in the U.S. ADSs are issued by a depository bank, such
as JPMorgan Chase Bank. They are traded in the same manner as shares in U.S. companies, on
the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) and the American Stock Exchange (AMEX) or quoted
on NASDAQ and the over-the-counter (OTC) market.
Although ADSs are U.S. dollar denominated securities and pay dividends in U.S. dollars, they do
not eliminate the currency risk associated with an investment in a non-U.S. company.
Clearing & Settlement and Redressal:

Clearing Corporation:
A Clearing Corporation is a part of an exchange or a separate entity and performs three
functions, namely, it clears and settles all transactions, i.e. completes the process of receiving
and delivering shares/funds to the buyers and sellers in the market, it provides financial
guarantee for all transactions executed on the exchange and provides risk management functions.
National Securities Clearing Corporation (NSCCL), a 100% subsidiary of NSE, performs the
role of a Clearing Corporation for transactions executed on the NSE.
38Page
Rolling Settlement:
Under rolling settlement all open positions at the end of the day mandatorily result in payment/
delivery ‘n’ days later. Currently trades in rolling settlement are settled on T+2 basis where T is
the trade day. For example, a trade executed on Monday is mandatorily settled by Wednesday
(considering two working days from the trade day). The funds and securities pay-in and pay-out
are carried out on T+2 days.
Pay-in and Pay-out:

Pay-in day is the day when the securities sold are delivered to the exchange by the sellers and
funds for the securities purchased are made available to the exchange by the buyers.
Pay-out day is the day the securities purchased are delivered to the buyers and the funds for the
securities sold are given to the sellers by the exchange.
At present the pay-in and pay-out happens on the 2nd working day after the trade is executed on
the stock exchange.
Auction:
On account of non-delivery of securities by the trading member on the pay in day, the securities
are put up for auction by the Exchange. This ensures that the buying trading member receives the
securities. The Exchange purchases the requisite quantity in auction market and gives them to the
buying trading member.
Arbitration:
Arbitration is an alternative dispute resolution mechanism provided by a stock exchange for
resolving disputes between the trading members and their clients in respect of trades done on the
exchange. If no amicable settlement could be reached through the normal grievance Redressal
39
mechanism of the stock exchange, then you can make application for reference to Arbitration
Page
under the Bye-Laws of the concerned Stock exchange.
Investor Protection Fund:

Investor Protection Fund (IPF) is maintained by NSE to make good investor claims, which may
arise out of non-settlement of obligations by the trading member, who has been declared a
defaulter, in respect of trades executed on the Exchange. The IPF is utilized to settle claims of
such investors where the trading member through whom the investor has dealt has been declared
a defaulter. Payments out of the IPF may include claims arising of nonpayment/non receipt of
securities by the investor from the trading member who has been declared a defaulter. The
maximum amount of claim payable from the IPF to the investor (where the trading member
through whom the investor has dealt is declared a defaulter) is Rs. 10 lakh.
40Page
INTRODUCTION-CURRENCY MARKET
Description of the Forex:
The Currency market, established in 1971, was created when floating exchange rates began to
materialize. The Forex market is not centralized, like in currency futures or stock markets.
Trading occurs over computers and telephones at thousands of locations worldwide.
The Foreign Exchange market, commonly referred as FOREX, is where banks, investors and
speculators exchange one currency to another. The largest foreign exchange activity retains the
spot exchange (i.e.., immediate) between five major currencies: US Dollar, British Pound,
Japanese Yen, Eurodollar and the Swiss Franc. It is also the largest financial market in the world.
In comparison, the US stock market may trade $10 billion in one day, whereas the Currency
market will trade up to $2 trillion in one single day. The Currency market is an opened 24 hours
a day market where the primary market for currencies is the 24-hour interbank market. This
market follows the sun around the world, moving from the major banking centers of the United
States to Australia and New Zealand to the Far East, to Europe and finally back to the Unites
States.Until now, professional traders from major international commercial and investment banks
have dominated the FX market. Other market participants range from large multinational
corporations, global money managers, registered dealers, international money brokers, and
futures and options traders, to private speculators.
There are three main reasons to participate in the FX market. One is to facilitate an actual
transaction, whereby international corporations convert profits made in foreign currencies into
their domestic currency. Corporate treasurers and money managers also enter the FX market in
order to hedge against unwanted exposure to future price movements in the currency market. The
third and more popular reason is speculation for profit. In fact, today it is estimated that less than
41
5% of all trading on the FX market is actually facilitating a true commercial transaction.

Page
The FX market is considered an Over The Counter (OTC) or ‘Interbank’ market, due to the fact
that transactions are conducted between two counterparts over the telephone or via an electronic
network. Trading is not centralized on an exchange, as with the stock and futures markets. A true
24-hour market, Forex trading begins each day in Sydney, and moves around the globe as the
business day begins in each financial center, first to Tokyo, London, and New York.
The Foreign Exchange Market in IndiaThe Indian forex market owes its origin to the
important step that RBI took in 1978 to allow banks to undertake intra-day trading in foreign
exchange. As a consequence, the stipulation of maintaining "square" or "near square" position
was to be complied with only at the close of business each day. During the period 1975-1992, the
exchange rate of rupee was officially determined by the RBI in terms of a weighted basket of
currencies of India’s major trading partners and there were significant restrictions on the current
account transactions.The appointment of an Expert Group on Foreign Exchange (popularly
known as Sodhani Committee) in November 1994 is a landmark in the design of foreign
exchange market in India. The Group studied the market in great detail and came up with far
reaching recommendations to develop, deepen and widen the forex market. In the process of
development of forex markets, banks have been accorded significant initiative and freedom to
operate in the market. Similarly, corporates were given flexibility to book forward cover based
on past turnover and allowed to use a variety of instruments like interest rates and currency
swaps, caps/collars and forward rate agreements in the international forex market. Rupee-foreign
currency swap market for hedging longer -term exposure has developed substantially in the last
few years.
Courtesy from the RBI (Reserve Bank of India) India
Currency Indian Rupee

Quotation Convention 3 decimal points
Most liquid cross USD/INR
42
Best Liquidity 0400-1000 GMT

Page
Average Bid/Offer * 8 pips (45.4200 / 45.4208)

1 pip 0.001 INR
Average Daily Trading Volume U.S. $750m
Settlement Transaction plus two days (T+2)
The exchange rate of the rupee is set by the interbank market. Since 2000, this has been managed
by the Reserve Bank of India and is classified as a managed float regime. Documentation is
required for offshore trading. NDFs and FX options are available. It is widely speculated that the
INR will be among the first of the emerging markets to become spot eligible without restrictions
or documentation. There is a very liquid bond market with maturities of up to 25 years available,
based on the government's need to fund the persistent budget deficit. Interest rate swaps are
available onshore and are traded up to 10 years, with mixed liquidity.
History of the Forex

Money, in one form or another, has been used by man for centuries. At first it was mainly Gold
or Silver coins. Goods were traded against other goods or against gold. So, the price of gold
became a reference point. But as the trading of goods grew between nations, moving quantities
of gold around places to settle payments of trade became cumbersome, risky and time
consuming. Therefore, a system was sought by which the payment of trades could be settled in
the seller’s local currency. But how much of buyer’s local currency should be equal to the
seller’s local currency
The answer was simple. The strength of a country’s currency depended on the amount of gold
reserves the country maintained. So, if country A’s gold reserves are double the gold reserves of
country B, country A’s currency will be twice in value when exchanged with the currency of
country B. This became to be known as The Gold Standard. Around 1880, The Gold Standard
was accepted and used worldwide.
During the first WORLD WAR, in order to fulfill the enormous financing needs, paper money
was created in quantities that far exceeded the gold reserves. The currencies lost their standard
43
parities and caused a gross distortion in the country’s standing in terms of its foreign liabilities
and assets.
Page
After the end of the second WORLD WAR the western allied powers attempted to solve the
problem at the Bretton Woods Conference in New Hampshire in 1944. In the first three weeks of
July 1944, delegates from 45 nations gathered at the United Nations Monetary and Financial
Conference in Bretton Woods, New Hampshire. The delegates met to discuss the postwar
recovery of Europe as well as a number of monetary issues, such as unstable exchange rates and
protectionist trade policies.
During the 1930s, many of the world’s major economies had unstable currency exchange rates.
As well, many nations used restrictive trade policies. In the early 1940s, the United States and
Great Britain developed proposals for the creation of new international financial institutions that
would stabilize exchange rates and boost international trade. There was also a recognized need to
organize a recovery of Europe in the hopes of avoiding the problems that arose after the First
World War. The delegates at Bretton Woods reached an agreement known as the Bretton Woods
Agreement to establish a postwar international monetary system of convertible currencies, fixed
exchange rates and free trade. To facilitate these objectives, the agreement created two
international institutions: the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the International Bank for
Reconstruction and Development (the World Bank). The intention was to provide economic aid
for reconstruction of postwar Europe. An initial loan of $250 million to France in 1947 was the
World Bank’s first act.
Historical Events in the Forex Market

Before diving into the inner workings of currency trading, it is important for every trader to
understand a few of the key milestones in the foreign exchange marker, since even to this day
they still represent events that are referenced repeatedly by professional forex traders.
BRETTON WOODS: ANOINTING THE DOLLAR AS THE WORLD CURRENCY

(1944)
In July 1944, representatives of 44 nations met in Bretton Woods, New Hampshire, to create a
44
new institutional arrangement for governing the international economy in the years after World
Page
War II. After the war, most agreed that international economic instability was one of the
principal causes of the war, and that such instability needed to be prevented in the future. The
agreement, which was developed by renowned economists John Maynard Keynes and Harry
Dexter White, was initially proposed to Great Britain as a part of the Lend-Lease Act—an
American act designed to assist Great Britain in postwar redevelopment efforts.
Bretton Woods Agreement consisted of several key points:

1. The formation of key international authorities designed to promote fair trade and international
economic harmony.
2. The fixing of exchange rates among currencies.
3. The convertibility between gold and the U.S. dollar, thus empowering the U.S. dollar as the
reserve currency of choice for the world.
Of the three aforementioned parameters, only the first point is still in existence today. The
organizations formed as a direct result of Bretton Woods include the International Monetary
Fund (IMF), World Bank, and General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), which are still
in existence today and play a crucial role in the development and regulation of international
economies. The IMF, for instance, initially enforced the price of $35 per ounce of gold that was
to be fixed under the Bretton Woods system, as well as the fixing of exchange rates that occurred
while Bretton Woods was in operation (and the financing required to ensure that fixed exchange
rates would not create fundamental distortions in the international economy).
Since the demise of Bretton Woods, the IMF has worked closely with another progeny of Bretton
Woods: the World Bank. Together, the two institutions now regularly lend funds to developing
nations, thus assisting them in the development of a public infrastructure capable of supporting a
sound mercantile economy that can contribute in an international arena. And, in order to ensure
that these nations can actually enjoy equal and legitimate access to trade with their industrialized
counterparts, the World Bank and IMF must work closely with GATT. While GATT was
initially meant to be a temporary organization, it now operates to encourage the dismantling of
trade barriers—namely tariffs and quotas.
45
The Bretton Woods Agreement was in operation from 1944 to 1971 when it was replaced with
Page
the Smithsonian Agreement, an international contract of sorts pioneered by U.S. President

Richard Nixon out of the necessity to accommodate for Bretton Woods' shortcomings,
unfortunately, the Smithsonian Agreement possessed the same critical weakness: while it did not
include gold/U.S. dollar convertibility, it did maintain fixed exchange rates—a facet that did not
accommodate the ongoing U.S. trade deficit and the international need for a weaker U.S. dollar.
As a result, the Smithsonian Agreement was short-lived.
Ultimately, the exchange rates of the world evolved into a free market, whereby supply and
demand were the sole criteria that determined the value of a currency. While this did and still
does result in a number of currency crises and greater volatility between currencies, it also
allowed the market to become self-regulating, and thus the market could dictate the appropriate
value of a currency without any hindrances.
As for Bretton Woods, perhaps its most memorable contribution to the
international economic arena was its role in changing the perception regarding the U.S. dollar.
While the British pound is still substantially stronger, and while the euro is a revolutionary
currency blazing new frontiers in both social behavior and international trade, the U.S dollar
remains the world’s reserve currency of choice, for the time being. This is undeniably due lately
in part to the Bretton Woods Agreement: by establishing dollar/gold convertibility, the dollars
role as the world's most accessible and reliable currency was firmly cemented. And thus, while
Bretton Woods may be a doctrine of yesteryear, its impact on the U.S. dollar and international
economics still resonates today.
END OF BRETTON WOODS: FREE MARKET CAPITALISM IS BORN (1971)

On August 15, 1971, it became official: the Bretton Woods system, a system used to fix the
value of a currency to the value of gold, was abandoned once and for all. While it had been
exorcised before, only to subsequently emerge in a new form, this final eradication of the Bretton
Woods system was truly its last stand: no longer would currencies be fixed in value to gold,
allowed to fluctuate only in a 1 percent range, but instead their fair valuation could be
46
determined by free market behavior such as trade flows and foreign direct investment.
Page
While U.S. President Nixon was confident that the end of the Bretton Woods system would bring
about better times for the international economy, he was not a believer that the free market could
dictate a currency's true valuation in a fair and catastrophe-free manner. Nixon, as well as most
economists, reasoned that an entirely unstructured foreign exchange market would result in
competing devaluations, which in turn would lead to the breakdown of international trade and
investment. The end result, Nixon and his board of economic advisers reasoned would be global
depression.
Accordingly, a few months later, the Smithsonian Agreement was introduced. Hailed by
President Nixon as the "greatest monetary agreement in the history of the world," the
Smithsonian Agreement strived to maintain fixed exchange rates, but to do so without the
backing of gold. Its key difference from the Bretton Woods system was that the value of the
dollar could float in a range of 2.25 percent, as opposed to just 1 percent under Bretton Woods.
Ultimately, the Smithsonian Agreement proved to be unfeasible as well. Without exchange rates
fixed to gold, the free market gold price shot up to $215 per ounce. Moreover, the U.S. trade
deficit continued to grow, and from a fundamental standpoint, the U.S. dollar needed to be
devalued beyond the 2.25 percent parameters established by the Smithsonian Agreement. In light
of these problems the foreign exchange markets were forced to close in February 1972.
The Currency markets reopened in March 1973, and this time they were not bound by a
Smithsonian Agreement: the value of the U.S. dollar was to be determined entirely by the
market, as its value was not fixed to any commodity, nor was its exchange rate fluctuation
confined to certain parametric. While this did provide the U.S. dollar, and other currencies by
default, the agility required to adapt to a new and rapidly evoking international trading
environment, it also set the stage for unprecedented inflation. The end of Bretton Woods and the
Smithsonian Agreement, as well as conflicts in the Middle East resulting in substantially higher
oil prices, helped to create stagflation—the synthesis of unemployment and inflation—in the
U.S. economy. It would not be until later in the decade, when Federal Reserve Chairman Paul
Volcker initiated new economic policies and President Ronald Reagan introduced a new fiscal
agenda, that the U.S. dollar would return to normal valuations. And by then, the foreign
47
exchange markets had thoroughly developed, and were now capable of serving a multitude of
Page
purposes: in addition to employing a laissez-faire style of regulation for international trade, they
also were beginning to attract speculators seeking to participate in a market with unrivaled
liquidity and continued growth. Ultimately, the death of Bretton Woods in 1971 marked the
beginning of a new economic era, one that liberated international trading while also Proliferating
speculative opportunities.
ASIAN FINANCIAL CRISIS (1997-1998)
Falling like a set of dominos on July 2, 1997, the relatively nascent Asian tiger economies
created a perfect example in showing the interdependence of global capital markets and their
subsequent effects throughout international currency forums. Based on several fundamental
breakdowns, the cause of the contagion stemmed largely from shrouded lending practices,
inflated trade deficits, mid immature capital markets. Added together, the factors contributed to a
"perfect storm" that left major regional markets incapacitated and once-prized currencies
devalued to significantly lower levels. With adverse effects easily seen in the equities markets,
currency market fluctuations were negatively impacted in much the same manner during this
time period.
The Bubble
Leading up to 1997, investors had become increasingly attracted to Asian
investment prospects, focusing on real estate development and domestic equities. As a result,
foreign investment capital flowed into the region as economic growth rates climbed on improved
production in countries like Malaysia, the Philippines, Indonesia, and South Korea. Thailand,
home of the baht, experienced a 13 percent growth rate in 1988 (falling to 6.5 percent in 1996).
Additional lending support for a stronger economy came from the enactment of a fixed currency
peg to the more formidable U.S. dollar. With a fixed valuation to the greenback countries like
Thailand could ensure financial stability in their own markets and a constant rate for export
trading purposes with the world's latest economy. Ultimately, the regions national currencies
appreciated as underlying fundamentals were justified, and speculative positions in expectation
of further climbs in price mounted.
48Page
“83% - The percentage of wealth given away by famous investor Warren Buffet
to the Bill % Melinda Gates charitable foundation.”
Ballooning Current Account Deficits and Nonperforming Loans

However, in early 1997, a shift in sentiment had begun to occur as international account deficits
became increasingly difficult for respective governments to handle and lending practices were
revealed to be detrimental to the economic infrastructure. In particular, economists were alerted
to the fact that Thailand's current account deficit had ballooned in 1996 to $14.7 billion (it had
been climbing since 1992). Although comparatively smaller than the U.S. deficit, the gap
represented 8 percent of the country's gross domestic product. Shrouded lending practices also
contributed heavily to these breakdowns as close personal relationships of borrowers with high-
ranking banking officials were well rewarded and surprisingly common throughout the region.
This aspect affected many of South Korea's highly leveraged conglomerates as total
nonperforming loan values sky-rocketed to 7.5 percent of gross domestic product.
Additional evidence of these practices could be observed in financial institutions throughout
Japan. After announcing a $136 billion total in questionable and nonperforming loans in 1994,
Japanese authorities admitted to an alarming $400 billion total a year later. Coupled with a then
crippled stock market, cooling real estate values, and dramatic slowdowns in the economy,
investors saw opportunity in a depreciating yen. subsequently adding selling pressure to neighbor
currencies. When Japan's asset bubble collapsed, asset prices fell by $10 trillion, with the fall in
real estate prices accounting for nearly 65 percent of the total decline, which was worth two
years of national output. This fall in asset prices sparked the banking crisis in Japan. It began in
the early 1990s and then developed into a full-blown systemic crisis in 1997 following the failure
of a number of high-profile financial institutions. In response, Japanese monetary authorities
warned of potentially increasing benchmark interest rates in hopes of defending the domestic
49
currency valuation.Unfortunately, these considerations never materialized and a shortfall ensued.

Page
Sparked mainly by an announcement of a managed float of the Thai baht, the slide snowballed as
central bank reserves evaporated and currency price levels became unsustainable in light of
downside selling pressure.
Currency Crisis
Following mass short speculation and attempted intervention, the aforementioned Asian
economies were left ruined and momentarily incapacitated. The Thailand baht, once a prized
possession, was devalued by as much as 48 percent, even slumping closer to a 100 percent fall at
the turn of the New Year. The most adversely affected was the Indonesian rupiah. Relatively
stable prior to the onset of a “crawling peg" with the Thai baht, the rupiah fell a whopping 228
percent from its previous high of 12,950 to the fixed U.S. dollar. These particularly volatile price
actions are reflected in Figure 2.4. Among the majors, the Japanese yen fell approximately 23
percent from its high to its low against the U.S. dollar in 1997 and 1998; it’s shown in Figure
2.5.
50
Page
Figure 2.4 Asian Crisis Price Action

The financial crisis of 1997-1998 revealed the interconnectivity of economies and their effects
on the global currency markets. Additionally, it showed the inability of central banks to
successfully intervene in currency valuations when confronted with overwhelming market forces
along with the absence of secure economic fundamentals. Today, with the assistance of IMF
reparation packages and the implementation of stricter requirements, Asia’s four little dragons
are churning away once again.
51Page
Figure 2.5 USD/JPY Asian Crisis Price Action

INTRODUCTION OF THE EURO (1999)
The introduction of the euro was a monumental achievement, marking the largest monetary
changeover ever. The euro was officially launched as an electronic trading currency on January
1, 1999. The 11 initial member states of the European Monetary Union (EMU) were Belgium,
Germany, Spain, France, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Austria, Portugal, and
Finland. Greece joined two years later. Each country fixed its currency to a specific conversion
rate against the euro, and a common monetary' policy governed by the European Central Bank
(ECU) was adopted. To many economists, the system would ideally include all of the original 15
European Union (EU) nations, but the United Kingdom, Sweden, and Denmark decided to keep
their own currencies for the time being. Euro notes and coins did not begin circulation until the
first two months of 2002. In deciding whether to adopt the euro, EU members all had to weigh
the pros and cons of such an important decision.
52 Page
Figure 2.5 EUR/USD Price since Launch

Players in Currency market:

Central Banks - The national central banks play an important role in the (FOREX) markets.
Ultimately, central banks seek to control the money supply and often have official or unofficial
target rates for their currencies. As many central banks have very substantial foreign exchange
reserves, their intervention power is significant. Among the most important responsibilities of a
central bank is the restoration of an orderly market in times of excessive exchange rate volatility
and the control of the inflationary impact of a weakening currency.
Frequently, the mere expectation of central bank intervention is sufficient to stabilize a currency,
but in case of aggressive intervention the actual impact on the short-term supply/demand balance
can lead to the desired moves in exchange rates.
If a central bank does not achieve its objectives, the market participants can take on a central
bank. The combined resources of the market participants could easily overwhelm any central
bank. Several scenarios of this nature were seen in the 1992-93 with the European Exchange
Rate Mechanism (ERM) collapse and 1997 throughout South East Asia.
Banks - The Interbank market caters to both the majority of commercial turnover as well as
enormous amounts of speculative trading. It is not uncommon for a large bank to trade billions of
dollars daily. Some of this trading activity is undertaken on behalf of corporate customers, but a
banks treasury room also conducts a large amount of trading, where bank dealers are taking their
own positions to make the bank profits.
The Interbank market has become increasingly competitive in the last couple of years and the
53
god-like status of top foreign exchange traders has suffered as equity traders are again back in
Page
charge. A large part of the banks’ trading with each other is taking place on electronic booking
systems that have negatively affected traditional foreign exchange brokers.
Interbank Brokers - Until recently, foreign exchange brokers were doing large amounts of
business, facilitating interbank trading and matching anonymous counterparts for comparatively
small fees. With the increased use of the Internet, a lot of this business is moving onto more
efficient electronic systems that are functioning as a closed circuit for banks only.
The traditional broker box, which lets bank traders and brokers hear market prices, is still seen in
most trading rooms, but turnover is noticeably smaller than just a few years ago due to increased
use of electronic booking systems.
Commercial Companies - The commercial companies’ international trade exposure is the

backbone of the foreign exchange markets. A multinational company has exposure in accounts
receivables and payables denominated in foreign currencies. They can be protected against
unfavorable moves with foreign exchange. That is why these markets are in existence.
Commercial companies often trade in sizes that are insignificant to short term market moves,
however, as the main currency markets can quite easily absorb hundreds of millions of dollars
without any big impact. It is also clear that one of the decisive factors determining the long-term
direction of a currency’s exchange rate is the overall trade flow.
Some multinational companies, whose exposures are not commonly known to the majority of
market, can have an unpredictable impact when very large positions are covered.
Retail Brokers - The arrival of the Internet has brought us a host of retail brokers. There is a
numbered amount of these non-bank brokers offering foreign exchange dealing platforms,
analysis, and strategic advice to retail customers. The fact is many banks do not undertake
foreign exchange trading for retail customers at all, and do not have the necessary resources or
inclination to support retail clients adequately. The services of such retail foreign exchange
brokers are more similar in nature to stock and mutual fund brokers and typically provide a
54
service-orientated approach to their clients.

Page
Hedge Funds - Hedge funds have gained a reputation for aggressive currency speculation in
recent years. There is no doubt that with the increasing amount of money some of these
investment vehicles have under management, the size and liquidity of foreign exchange markets
is very appealing. The leverage available in these markets also allows such a fund to speculate
with tens of billions at a time. The herd instinct that is very apparent in hedge fund circles was
seen in the early 1990’s with George Soros and others squeezing the GBP out of the European
Monetary System.
It is unlikely, however, that such investments would be successful if the underlying investment
strategy was not sound. It is also argued that hedge funds actually perform a beneficial service to
foreign exchange markets. They are able to exploit economical weakness and to expose a
countries unsustainable financial plight, thus forcing realignment to more realistic levels.
Investors and Speculators - In all efficient markets, the speculator has an important role taking
over the risks that a commercial participant hedges. The boundaries of speculation in the foreign
exchange market are unclear, because many of the above mentioned players also have
speculative interests, even central banks. The foreign exchange market is popular with investors
due to the large amount of leverage that can be obtained and the liquidity with which positions
can be entered and exited. Taking advantage of two currencies interest rate differentials is
another popular strategy that can be efficiently undertaken in a market with high leverage.
Types of Currencies
In economics, the term currency can refer to a particular currency, for example Pound Sterling,
or to the coins and banknotes of a particular currency, which comprise the physical aspects of a
nation's money supply. The other part of a nation's money supply consists of money deposited in
banks (sometimes called deposit money), ownership of which can be transferred by means of
cheques or other forms of money transfer such as credit and debit cards. Deposit money and
55
currency are money in the sense that both are acceptable as a means of exchange, but money
Page
need not necessarily be currency.

Historically, money in the form of currency has predominated. Usually (gold or silver) coins of
intrinsic value commensurate with the monetary unit (commodity money), have been the norm.
By contrast, modern currency, as fiat money, is intrinsically worthless.
Major currencies
US Dollar – The United States dollar is the world’s main currency – a universal measure to
evaluate any other currency traded on Forex. All currencies are generally quoted in US dollar
terms. Under conditions of international economic and political unrest, the US dollar is the main
safe-haven currency, which was proven particularly well during the Southeast Asian crisis of
1997-1998.
As it was indicated, the US dollar became the leading currency toward the end of the Second
World War along the Bretton Woods Accord, as the other currencies were virtually pegged
against it. The introduction of the Euro in 1999 reduced the dollar’s importance only marginally.
The other major currencies traded against the US dollar are the Euro, Japanese Yen, British
Pound and the Swiss Franc.
Euro – The Euro was designed to become the premier currency in trading by simply being
quoted in American terms. Like the US dollar, the Euro has a strong international presence
stemming from members of the European Monetary Union. The currency remains plagued by
unequal growth, high unemployment, and government resistance to structural changes. The pair
was also weighed in 1999 and 2000 by outflows from foreign investors, particularly Japanese,
who were forced to liquidate their losing investments in euro-denominated assets. Moreover,
European money managers rebalanced their portfolios and reduced their Euro exposure as their
needs for hedging currency risk in Europe declined.
56Page
Japanese Yen – The Japanese Yen is the third most traded currency in the world; it has a much
smaller international presence than the US dollar or the Euro. The Yen is very liquid around the
world, practically around the clock. The natural demand to trade the Yen concentrated mostly
among the Japanese keiretsu, the economic and financial conglomerates. The Yen is much more
sensitive to the fortunes of the Nikkei index, the Japanese stock market, and the real estate
market.
British Pound – Until the end of the World War II, the Pound was the currency of reference.
The currency is heavily traded against the Euro and the US dollar, but has a spotty presence
against the other currencies. Prior to the introduction of the Euro, both the Pound benefited from
any doubts about the currency convergence. After the introduction of the Euro, Bank of England
is attempting to bring the high U.K. rates closer to the lower rates in the Euro zone. The Pound
could join the Euro in the early 2000’s, provided that the U.K. referendum is positive.
Swiss Franc – The Swiss Franc is the only currency of a major European country that belongs
neither to the European Monetary Union nor the G-7 countries. Although the Swiss economy is
relatively small, the Swiss Franc is one of the four major currencies, closely resembling the
strength and quality of the Swiss economy and finance. Switzerland had a very close economic
relationship with Germany, and thus to the Euro zone. Therefore, in terms of political uncertainty
in the East, the Swiss Franc is favored generally over the Euro.
Typically, it is believed that the Swiss Franc is a stable currency. Actually, from a foreign
exchange point of view, the Swiss Franc closely resembles the patterns of the Euro, but lacks its
liquidity. As the demand for it exceeds supply, the Swiss Franc can be more volatile than the
Euro.
The Canadian Dollar and the Australian Dollar are also part of the currencies traded on the
Currency market but do not count as being part of the major currencies due to their insufficient
volume and circulation. They can only be traded against the US Dollar.
57
Canadian Dollar - Canada decided to use the dollar instead of a Pound Sterling system because
Page
of the ubiquity of Spanish dollars in North America in the 18th century and early 19th century
and because of the standardization of the American dollar. The Province of Canada declared that
all accounts would be kept in dollars as of January 1, 1858, and ordered the issue of the first
official Canadian dollars in the same year. The colonies that would come together in Canadian
Confederation progressively adopted a decimal system over the next few years.
Australian Dollar - The Australian Dollar was introduced in February 14, 1966, not only
replacing the Australian Pound but also introducing a decimal system. Following the
introduction of the Australian Dollar in 1966, the value of the national currency continued to be
managed in accord with the Bretton Woods gold standard as it had been since 1954. Essentially
the value of the Australian Dollar was managed with reference to gold, although in practice the
US dollar was used. In 1983, the Australian government «floated» the Australian dollar, meaning
that it no longer managed its value by reference to the US dollar or any other foreign currency.
Today the value of the Australian Dollar is managed with almost exclusive reference to domestic
measures of value such as the CPI (Consumer Price Index).
Forex Symbol
Symbol Currency
GBP British Pound
USD US Dollar
EUR Euro
JPY Japanese Yen
CAD Canadian Dollar
CHF Swiss Franc
AUD Australian Dollar
Ex.: EUR/USD = Euro/US Dollar
CURRENCY PAIRS
The currencies are always traded in pairs. For example, EUR/USD, which means Euro over US
58
dollars, would be a typical pair. In this case, the Euro, being the first currency can be called the
Page
base currency. The second currency, by default USD, is called the counter or quote currency.
As mentioned, the first currency is the base, therefore in a pair you can refer the amount of that
currency as being the amount required to purchase one unit of the second currency.
So, if you want to buy the currency pair, you have to buy the EURO and sell the USD
simultaneously. On the other hand, if you are looking forward to sell the currency pair, you have
to sell the EURO and buy the USD.
The most important thing to understand in a currency pair, or more precisely in a Forex
transaction, is that you will be selling or buying the same currency.
59
Page
CROSS CURRENCY PAIR

A cross currency pair is any currency pair that does not have the U.S. dollar as one of the
currencies in the pairing. For example, one of the most active crosses is EUR/JPY, pitting the
two largest currencies outside the U.S. dollar directly against each other. But the EUR/JPY rate
at any given instant is a function of the current EUR/USD and USD/JPY rates.
The most popular cross pairs involve the most actively traded major currencies, like EUR/GBP,
EUR/GBP, and EUR/CHF. According to the 2004 BIS survey of foreign exchange market
activity, direct cross trading accounted for a relatively small percentage of global daily volume-
less than 10 percent for the major crosses combined.
WHY TRADE THE CROSSES?

Cross pairs represent entirely new sets of routinely fluctuating currency pairs that offer another
universe of trading opportunities beyond the primary USD pairs. Developments in the currency
market are not always a simple but on what’s happening to the U.S. dollar. Crosses are the other
half of the story, and their significance appears to be increasing dramatically as a result of
electronic trading.
What Are Currency Correlations and How Do Traders Use Them?

When trading in the FX market, one of the most important facts to remember in creating a
strategy is that no currency pair is isolated. In many cases, foreign economic conditions, interest
rates, and price changes affect much more than just a single pairing. Everything is interrelated in
the Currency market to some extent, and knowing the direction and how strong this relationship
is can be used to your advantage; it has the potential to be a great trading tool. The bottom line is
that unless you only want to trade one pair at a time, it can be very profitable to take into account
how pairs move relative to one another. To do this, we can use correlation analysis. Correlations
are calculations based on pricing data, and these numbers can help gauge the relationships that
60
exist between different currency pairs. The information that the numbers give us can be a good
Page
aid for any trader who wants to diversify his or her portfolio, double up on positions without
investing in the same currency pair, or just get an idea of how much risk their trades are opening
them up to. If used correctly, this method has the potential to maximize gains, gauge exposure,
and help prevent counterproductive trading.
Exchange rate
Because currencies are traded in pairs and exchanged one against the other when traded, the rate
at which they are exchanged is called the exchange rate. The majority of currencies are traded
against the US dollar (USD), which is traded more than any other currency. The four currencies
traded most frequently after the US dollar are the euro (EUR), the Japanese yen (JPY), the
British pound sterling (GBP) and the Swiss franc (CHF). These five currencies make up the
majority of the market and are called the major currencies or “the Majors”. Some sources also
include the Australian dollar (AUD) within the group of major currencies.
The first currency in the exchange pair is referred to as the base currency. The second currency is
the counter currency or quote currency. The counter or quote currency is thus the numerator in
the ratio, and the base currency is the denominator.
The exchange rate tells a buyer how much of the counter or quote currency must be paid to
obtain one unit of the base currency. The exchange rate also tells a seller how much is received
in the counter or quote currency when selling one unit of the base currency. For example, an
exchange rate for EUR/USD of 1.5083 specifies to the buyer of Euros that 1.5083 USD must be
paid to obtain 1 euro.
Spreads
It is the difference between BUY and SELL, or BID and ASK. In other words, this is the
difference between the market maker's "selling" price (to its clients) and the price the market
maker "buys" it from its clients. If an investor buys a currency and immediately sells it (and thus
61
there is no change in the rate of exchange), the investor will lose money. The reason for this is
Page
“the spread”. At any given moment, the amount that will be received in the counter currency
when selling a unit of base currency will be lower than the amount of counter currency which is
required to purchase a unit of base currency. For instance, the EUR/USD bid/ask currency rates
at your bank may be 1.4975/1.5025, representing a spread of 500 pips (percentage in points; one
pip = 0.0001). Such a rate is much higher than the bid/ask currency rates that online Forex
investors commonly encounter, such as 1.5015/1.5020, with a spread of 5 pips. In general,
smaller spreads are better for Forex investors since they require a smaller movement in exchange
rates in order to profit from a trade.
Margin
Banks and/or online trading providers need collateral to ensure that the investor can pay in the
event of a loss. The collateral is called the “margin” and is also known as minimum security in
Currency markets. In practice, it is a deposit to the trader's account that is intended to cover any
currency trading losses in the future.
Margin enables private investors to trade in markets that have high minimum units of trading, by
allowing traders to hold a much larger position than their account value. Margin trading also
enhances the rate of profit, but similarly enhances the rate of loss, beyond that taken without
leveraging.
Leading Economic Indicators:

The following is a list of economic indicators used in the USA. Obviously, there are many more,
as well as those of other leading economies (such as Germany, the UK, Japan, etc.). In general, it
is not only the numerical value of an indicator that is important, but also the market’s
anticipation and prediction of the forecast, and the impact of the relation between anticipated and
actual figures on the market.
Such macro indicators are followed by the vast majority of traders worldwide. The “quality” of
62
the published data can differ over time. The value of the indicator data is considered greater if it
Page
presents new information, or is instrumental to drawing conclusions which could not be drawn
under other reports or data. Furthermore, an indicator is highly valuable if one may use it to
better forecast future trends
Note that in the USA most indicators are published on certain weekdays, rather than on a
particular monthly date (e.g. the second Wednesday in each month, as opposed to the 14 of each
month, etc.).
Each indicator is marked as High (H), Medium (M) or Low (L), according to the importance
commonly attributed to it.
CPI -Consumer Price Index; Core-CPI:

Bureau of Labor and Statistics; around the 20th of each month, 8:30am EST, covers previous
month's data
The CPI is considered the most widely used measure of inflation and is regarded as an indicator
of the effectiveness of government policy. The CPI is a basket of consumer goods (and services)
tracked from month to month (excluding taxes). The CPI is one of the most followed economic
indicators and considered to be a very big market mover. A rising CPI indicates inflation. The
Core-CPI (CPI, excluding food and energy, expense items which are subject to seasonal
fluctuations) gives a more stringent measure of general prices.
Employment Report
Department of Labor; the first Friday of each month, 8:30am EST, covers previous month data.
The collection of the data is gathered through a survey among 375,000 business and 60,000
households. The report reviews: the number of new work places created or cancelled in the
economy, average wages per hour and the average length of the work week. The report is
considered as one of the most important economic publications, both for the fact that it discloses
new up-to-date information and due to the fact that, together with NFP, it gives a good picture of
the total state of the economy. The report also breaks out data by sector
63
(e.g. manufacturing, services, building, mining, public, etc.)

Page
Employment Situation Report

Bureau of Labor and Statistics; the first Friday of each month, 8:30am EST, covers previous
month data.
The Employment Situation Report is a monthly indicator which contains two major parts. One
part is the unemployment and new jobs created: the report reveals the unemployment rate and the
change in the unemployment rate. The second part of the report indicates things like average
weekly hours worked and average hourly earnings. This data is important for determining the
tightness of the labor market, which is a major determinant of inflation. The Bureau of Labor
surveys over 250 regions across the United States and covers almost every major industry. This
indicator is certainly one of the most watched indicators and almost always moves markets.
Investors value the fact that information in the Employment report is very timely as it is less than
a week old. The report provides one of the best snapshots of the health of the economy.
FOMC Meeting (Federal Open Market Committee): Rate announcement

The meeting of the US Federal Bank representatives, held 8 times a year. The decision about the
prime interest rate is published during each meeting (around 14:15 EST).
The FED (the Federal Reserve of USA) is responsible for managing the US monetary policy,
controlling the banks, providing services to governmental organizations and citizens, and
maintaining the country’s financial stability.
There are 12 Fed regions in the USA (each comprising several states), represented in the Fed
committee by regional commissioners.
The rate of interest on a currency is in practice the price of the money. The higher the rate of
interest on a currency, the more people will tend to hold that currency, to purchase it and in that
way to strengthen the value of the currency. This is very important indicator affecting the rate of
64
inflation and is a very big market mover.

Page
GDP - Gross Domestic Product

BEA (Bureau of Economic Analysis); last day of the quarter, 8:30am EST, covers previous
quarter data.
The US Commerce department publishes the GDP in 3 modes: advance; preliminary and final.
GDP is a gross measure of market activity. It represents the monetary value of all the goods and
services produced by an economy over a specified period. This includes consumption,
government purchases, investments, and the trade balance. The GDP is perhaps the greatest
indicator of the economic health of a country. It is usually measured on a yearly basis, but
quarterly stats are also released.
The Commerce Department releases an "advance report" on the last day of each quarter. Within
a month it follows up with the "preliminary report" and then the "final report" is released yet a
month later. The most recent GDP figures have a relatively high importance to the markets. GDP
indicates the pace at which a country's economy is growing (or shrinking).
PMI - Purchasing Managers Index

Institute for Supply Management; the first business day of each month, 10:00am EST, covers
previous month's data
The PMI is a composite index that is based on five major indicators including: new orders;
inventory levels; production; supplier deliveries and the employment environment. Each
indicator has a different weight and the data is adjusted for seasonal factors. The Association of
Purchasing Managers surveys over 300 purchasing managers nationwide who represent 20
different industries. A PMI index over 50 indicates that manufacturing is expanding, while
anything below 50 means that the industry is contracting. The PMI report is an extremely
65
important indicator for the financial markets as it is the best indicator of factory production.
Page
The index is popularly used for detecting inflationary pressure as well as indicating
manufacturing activity. The PMI is not as strong as the CPI in detecting inflation, but because
the data is released one day after the month, it is very timely. Should the PMI report an
unexpected change, it is usually followed by a quick reaction in market. One especially key area
of the report is growth in new orders, which predicts manufacturing activity in future months.
Retail Sales Data; Retail Sales less Automotives

Bureau of Census; around the 12th of each month, 8:30am EST, covers previous month’s data.
Retail sales are a key driving force in US economy. This indicator tracks the merchandise sold
by companies within the retail trade and measures the total consumer spending on retails sales
(not including service costs). The retail revenues are a major part (two thirds) of the US
economy. The Census Bureau surveys hundreds of various sized firms and business offering
some type of retail trade. Every month the data is released showing the percent change from the
previous month’s data. A negative number indicates that sales decreased from the previous
months sales. This indicator is a very big market mover because it is used as a gauge of
consumer activity and confidence, as higher sales figures indicate increased economic activity.
The data is very timely because retail sales data is released within 2 weeks of the previous
month.
Trade Balance
Department of Commerce; the second week of each month, 8:30am EST, covers month before
previous data
A country’s trade balance is the largest component of a country's balance of payments. The
balance of trade measures the difference between the value of goods and services that a nation
exports, and those it imports. A country has a trade deficit if it imports more than it exports. The
66
opposite scenario is a trade surplus. It is considered a very big market mover.

Page
Budget Statement Monthly

A monthly report by US government (the Treasury Department), showing the monthly budget
deficit or surplus
The level of deficit/surplus affects the level of US bonds issues by the government, hence – their
price. In addition, this report reflects the level of tax collected by the government, which is
indicative of the level of economic activity. Consequently, the April report (the month in which
Americans submit their tax returns) is even more important than those released in other months.
Composite Index of Leading Indicators

The Conference Board; around the 20th of each month,10:00 am EST. An index used to predict
the direction of the economy's movements in the months to come. The index is made up of 10
economic components, whose changes tend to precede changes in the overall economy. These 10
components include:
1. The average weekly hours worked by manufacturing workers;
2. The average number of initial applications for unemployment insurance;
3. The amount of manufacturers' new orders for consumer goods and materials;
4. The speed of delivery of new merchandise to vendors from suppliers;
5. The amount of new orders for capital goods unrelated to defense;
6. The amount of new building permits for residential buildings;
7. The S&P 500 stock index;
8. The inflation-adjusted monetary supply (M2);
9. The spread between long and short interest’s rates;
10. Consumer sentiment.
By looking at the Composite Index of Leading Indicators in the light of business cycles and
general economic conditions, investors and businesses can form expectations about what's ahead,
67
and make better-informed decisions. It has medium importance, as its many components are
Page
already known at the time of its publication.
Current Account
BEA (Bureau of Economic Analysis); quarterly, around six weeks after quarter end. The
difference between a nation's total exports of goods, services and transfers, and its total imports
of the same. Current account balance calculations exclude transactions in financial assets and
liabilities. The level of the current account is followed as an indicator of trends in foreign trade,
so it is regarded as a big market mover.
GDP Price Deflator

BEA (Bureau of Economic Analysis); last day of the quarter, 8:30am EST, covers previous
quarter data
The GDP deflator shows how much a change in the base year's GDP relies upon changes in the
price level.”Also known as the "GDP implicit price deflator”. As it is not based on a fixed basket
of goods and services, the GDP deflator has an advantage over the consumer price index (CPI).
Changes in consumption patterns, or the introduction of new goods and services, are
automatically reflected in the deflator. This indicator is of medium importance to the markets.
Industrial Production Capacity; Production Utilization

Federal Reserve; middle of the month, 9:15am EST, covers previous month data
It is a chain-weighted measure of the change in the production of the nation's factories, mines
and utilities as well as a measure of their industrial capacity and of how many available resources
are being used (commonly known as capacity utilization). In addition, the Capacity Utilization
Index provides an estimate of how much factory capacity is in use. They are important
indicators, as the manufacturing sector accounts for one-quarter of the economy.
68
“$11 million - the amount a company must have earned over the last
Page
3 years to gain a listing on the NASDAQ stock exchange.”

REGULATORY FRAMEWORK FOR CURRENCY DERIVATIVES
The Indian economy is integrating at a fast pace with the rest of the world. Indian Financial
Markets have also been growing significantly. The average daily turnover in the foreign
exchange market increased from US $ 23.7 billion in March 2006 to US $ 34.0 billion in March
2007 in consonance with the increase in foreign exchange transactions. Although liberalization
helped the Indian foreign exchange markets in various ways, extensive fluctuations of exchange
rate also occurred. These issues have attracted a great deal of interest from policy-makers and
investors. Hence in the context of upgrading the Indian foreign exchange market to international
standards, a well-developed foreign exchange derivative market (both OTC as well as Exchange
Traded) is required.
The Committee on Fuller Capital Account Convertibility had recommended that currency futures
may be introduced subject to risks being contained through proper trading mechanism, structure
of contracts and regulatory environment. Accordingly, Reserve Bank of India in the Annual
Policy Statement for the Year 2007- 08 proposed to set up a Working Group on Currency
Futures to study the international experience and suggest a suitable framework to operationalise
the proposal, in line with the current legal and regulatory framework. The group has had
extensive consultations with a cross section of market participants including bankers’
associations, banks, brokers, and exchanges, both Indian and International.
69
SECURITIES CONTRACTS (REGULATION) ACT, 1956 [SC(R)A]

Page
SC(R)A aims at preventing undesirable transactions in securities, by regulating the business of

dealing therein and by providing for certain other matters connected therewith. This is the
principal Act, which governs the trading of securities in India. The term “securities” has been
defined in the SC(R)A. As per Section 2(h) of the Act, the ‘Securities’ include:
1. Shares, scrips, stocks, bonds, debentures, debenture stock or other marketable securities of a
like nature in or of any incorporated company or other body corporate.
2. Derivatives
3. Units or any other instrument issued by any collective investment scheme to the investors in
such schemes.
4. Government securities
5. Such other instruments as may be declared by the Central Government to be securities.
6. Rights or interests in securities.
“Derivative” is defined to include:
· A security derived from a debt instrument, share, loan whether secured or unsecured, risk
instrument or contract for differences or any other form of security.
· A contract which derives its value from the prices, or index of prices, of underlying securities.
Section 18A provides that notwithstanding anything contained in any other law for the time
being in force, contracts in derivative shall be legal and valid if such contracts are:
· Traded on a recognized stock exchange

· Settled on the clearing house of the recognized stock exchanges, in accordance with the rules
and bye–laws of such stock exchanges.
70Page
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE BOARD OF INDIA ACT, 1992

SEBI Act, 1992 provides for establishment of Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI)
with statutory powers for (a) protecting the interests of investors in securities (b) promoting the
development of the securities market and (c) regulating the securities market. Its regulatory
jurisdiction extends over corporate in the issuance of capital and transfer of securities, in addition
to all intermediaries and persons associated with securities market.
SEBI has been obligated to perform the aforesaid functions by such measures as it thinks fit. In
particular, it has powers for:
· regulating the business in stock exchanges and any other securities markets,
· registering and regulating the working of brokers, sub–brokers etc.
· promoting and regulating self-regulatory organizations,
· prohibiting fraudulent and unfair trade practices,
· calling for information from, undertaking inspection, conducting inquiries and audits of the
stock exchanges, mutual funds and other persons associated with the securities market and
intermediaries and self–regulatory organizations in the securities market,
· performing such functions and exercising such powers under the Securities Contracts
(Regulation) Act, 1956, as may be delegated to it by the Central Government.
RBI-SEBI STANDING TECHNICAL COMMITTEE ON EXCHANGE TRADED

CURRENCY AND INTEREST RATE DERIVATIVES
With a view to enable entities to manage volatility in the currency market, RBI on April 20, 2007
issued comprehensive guidelines on the usage of foreign currency forwards, swaps and options
in the OTC market. At the same time, RBI also set up an Internal Working Group to explore the
advantages of introducing currency futures. The Report of the Internal Working Group of RBI
submitted in April 2008, recommended the introduction of exchange traded currency futures.
71
With the expected benefits of exchange traded currency futures, it was decided in a joint meeting
Page
of RBI and SEBI on February 28, 2008, that an RBI-SEBI Standing Technical Committee on
Exchange Traded Currency and Interest Rate Derivatives would be constituted. To begin with,
the Committee would evolve norms and oversee the implementation of Exchange traded
currency futures. The Terms of Reference to the Committee were as under:
1. To coordinate the regulatory roles of RBI and SEBI in regard to trading of Currency and
Interest Rate Futures on the Exchanges.
2. To suggest the eligibility norms for existing and new Exchanges for Currency and Interest
Rate Futures trading.
3. To suggest eligibility criteria for the members of such exchanges.
4. To review product design, margin requirements and other risk mitigation measures on an
ongoing basis
5. To suggest surveillance mechanism and dissemination of market information.
6. To consider microstructure issues, in the overall interest of financial stability.
This committee submitted its report on 29th May 2008.

The Report of the RBI-SEBI Standing Technical Committee on Exchange Traded Currency
Futures is available in SEBI’s web site.
The trading of derivatives is governed by the provisions contained in the SC(R)A, the SEBI Act,
the rules and regulations framed there under and the rules and bye–laws of stock exchanges
FOREIGN EXCHANGE MANAGEMENT ACT, 1999 – PROVISIONS

Thereafter, a series of regulatory measures were taken so as to implement the recommendations
of both the committees and introduce Exchange Traded Currency Futures in the Indian market.
These regulatory measures are summarized below:

1) The Foreign Exchange Management (Foreign Exchange Derivative Contracts) Regulations,
2000 (Notification No. FEMA 25/RB-2000 dated May 3, 2000) was amended by RBI in exercise
72
of the powers conferred by clause (h) of sub-section 2 of Section 47 of the Foreign Exchange
Page
Management Act, 1999 (Act 42 of 1999).

2) This amendment incorporated a new clause after clause (v) in regulation 2 reading "(va)
'Currency Futures’ means a standardized foreign exchange derivative contract traded on a
recognized stock exchange to buy or sell one currency against another on a specified future date,
at a price specified on the date of contract, but does not include a forward contract."
3) A new regulation (5A) was inserted after regulation 5 of the principal regulation, reading:
"5A. Permission to a person resident in India to enter into currency Futures”

A person resident in India may enter into currency futures in a stock exchange recognized under
section 4 of the Securities Contract (Regulation)Act, 1956, to hedge an exposure to risk or
otherwise, subject to such terms and conditions as may be set forth in the directions issued by the
Reserve Bank of India from time to time."
4) These amendments have defined the meaning of ‘Currency Futures’ and also permitted a
person resident in India to enter into a Currency Future Transaction to hedge on exposure to risk
or otherwise.
5) On 6th August 2008 RBI had issued Notification No. FED.1/DG(SG)-2008 in exercise of
powers conferred by section 45W of the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934. The directions issued
under this notification are titled “Currency Futures (Reserve Bank) Directions, 2008” which
came into force w.e.f. 6th August, 2008.
REGULATORY FRAMEWORK FOR EXCHANGES

A recognized stock exchange having nationwide terminals or a new exchange recognized by
SEBI may set up currency futures segment after obtaining SEBI’s approval. The currency futures
segment should fulfill the following eligibility conditions for approval:
1. The trading should take place through an online screen-based trading system, which also has a
disaster recovery site.
2. The clearing of the currency derivatives market should be done by an independent Clearing
Corporation. The Clearing Corporation should satisfy the conditions stipulated in the following
73
section
Page
3. The exchange must have an online surveillance capability which monitors positions, prices
and volumes in real time so as to deter market manipulation.
4. The exchange shall have a balance sheet net worth of at least Rs. 100 crores.
5. Information about trades, quantities, and quotes should be disseminated by the exchange in
real time to at least two information vending networks which are accessible to investors in the
country. The per half- hour capacity of the computers and the network should be at least 4 to 5
times of the anticipated peak load in any half hour, or of the actual peak load seen in any half-
hour during the preceding six months, whichever is higher. This shall be reviewed from time to
time on the basis of experience. The segment should have at least 50 members to start currency
derivatives trading. The exchange should have arbitration and investor grievances redressal
mechanism operative from all the four areas/regions of the country. The exchange should have
adequate inspection capability. If already existing, the exchange should have a satisfactory
record of monitoring its members, handling investor complaints and preventing irregularities in
trading.
A recognized stock exchange where other securities are also being traded may set up a separate
currency futures segment in the following manner:
1. The trading and the order driven platform of currency futures should be separate from the
trading platforms of the other segments.
2. The membership of the currency futures segment should be separate from the membership of
the other segments.
REGULATORY FRAMEWORK FOR CLEARING CORPORATIONS

A Clearing Corporation in the currency futures segment can function only after obtaining SEBI
approval. The conditions inter-alia includes the following:
· The Clearing Corporation should be a company incorporated under the Companies Act, 1956
and should be distinct from the exchange.
· The Clearing Corporation must perform full novation.
· The Clearing Corporation should enforce the stipulated margin requirements, mark to market
74
settlement, electronic funds transfer, etc.

Page
· A separate settlement guarantee fund should be created and maintained for meeting the
obligations arising out of the currency futures segment. A separate investor protection fund
should also be created and maintained for the currency futures market.
GOVERNING COUNCIL OF THE EXCHANGE AND CLEARING CORPORATION

The currency futures segment of the Exchange should have a separate Governing Council on
which the representation of Trading /Clearing Members of the currency futures segment should
not exceed 25%. Further,
50% of the public representatives on the Governing Council of the currency futures segment can
be common with the Governing Council of the cash/equity derivatives segments of the
Exchange. The Chairman of the
Governing Council of the currency futures segment of the Exchange shall be a member of the
Governing Council. If the Chairman is a Trading Member/ Clearing Member, then he shall not
carry on any trading/clearing business on any Exchange during his tenure as Chairman. No
trading / clearing member should be allowed simultaneously to be on the Governing Council of
the currency futures segment and the cash/equity derivatives segment.
The currency futures segment of the Clearing Corporation should be governed by a separate
Governing Council which should not have any trading member representation.
“1993 - The year the first ETF was introduced tracking the S&P 500”
75
“89% - The amount wiped off stocks between 1929-1932, during the
Page
great depression.”
Conclusion
During this project work I have tried my best to touch each and every aspect which would affect
the business process of the company.
All exchanges generate impacts in the core functions of Financial Markets, Currency price
discovery, price risk management and as a venue for investment. Each exchange offers liquid
markets, a central counter party to all but eliminate counter party risk, market data that is freely
and transparently disseminated and futures markets that are well-correlated with spot markets to
enable effective price risk management. Only two positive impacts were opposed on the basis of
experience in the featured markets to date- that a currency exchange can enable hedging against
inflation and quality improvements generated by the exchange can reduce dependence on
imports.
The parameters that decide the price of currency in different exchanges are:
· Volume of currency being traded.
· Demand and supply forces.

76
Page
· Worldwide demand and supply of a given currency.
The area of facilitating currency is perhaps the area where there is greatest scope for exchanges
to learn from each other's experience. These are the main aspects which could be concluded from
the responses. On the basis of these observations some recommendations could be provided to
the companies about which we will be discussing in the next part.
During our training period the work which I have done, has helped me a lot. I understood, to
reach any heights you have to start from the scratch. I understand that if I want to be best in any
organization then I have to do my work with full dedication and sincerity
ANNEXURES
77Page
Table 1 : Indicators of Global Financial Market Developments
78Page
Table 2 Domestic Financial Markets at a Glance
79Page
Table 3 Stock Market Indicators
80Page
Table 4 Data on Mobilization of Resources
81
Page
82Page
Table 5 Charts and Data on Money Markets
83
Page
84Page
Money Market Operations as on June 16, 2010

(Amounts in Rupees crore, Rate in Per cent)
MONEY MARKETS @ Volume Weighted Range
(One Leg) Average Rate
A. Overnight Segment (I+II+III) 64,848.37 5.22 3.40-5.50
I. Call Money 9,368.82 5.23 3.40-5.40
II. Collateralised Borrowing and 45,489.75 5.21 5.10-5.28
Lending Obligation (CBLO)

III. Market Repo 9,989.80 5.30 4.25-5.50
B. Term Segment
I. Notice Money** 10.76 4.06 3.50-4.50
II. Term Money@@ 275.00 - 6.75-6.75
III. CBLO 0.00 - -
IV. Market Repo 0.00 - -
Amount Outstanding Current

RBI OPERATIONS Rate
C. Standing Liquidity Facility availed from RBI 878.78 5.25
D. Liquidity Adjustment Facility
(i) Repo (1 day) 28,055.00 5.25
(ii) Reverse Repo (1 day) 350.00 3.75
RESERVE POSITION @
E. Scheduled commercial banks' cumulative 14/06/2010 2,974,150.83

cash balances with RBI as on
for the fortnight ending 18-06-2010
@ Based on provisional Reserve Bank of India / Clearing Corporation of India Limited Data
- Not Applicable / No Transaction
85
** Relates to uncollateralized transactions of 2 to 14 days tenor

@@ Relates to uncollateralized transactions of 15 days to one year tenor
Page
Ajit Prasad Manager

Press Release : 2009-2010/1715
Screenshots:
86Page
87Page
88Page
89Page
90Page
91Page
92Page
93Page
94Page
Table 6 Turnover by different Currency
95Page
96Page
Table 7 Global FX market turnover
97Page
Table 8 Data and Charts on Exchange Rate
98
Page
99Page
100
Page
Table 9: Currency and Stock Price Movements in EME'S
101
Page
102
Page
103
Page
Bibliography
1. Currency Trading for Dummies by Mark Galant and Brian Dolan
2. Ncfm Currency Future Module
3. IFTA Fundamentals
4. Quick Guide to Currency Markets
Websites
5. http://www.bseindia.com
6. http://www.nseindia.com
7. http://investopedia.com
8. http://www.google.com
104
9. http://www.currencytradingweb.com
Page
105
Page

Financial Market Final Collegeforprtg1

Uploaded by

Document Information

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Financial Market Final Collegeforprtg1

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

KEDIA STOCKS AND COMODITIES PVT .LTD.

SUMMER PROJECT REORT ON

“FINANCIAL AND CURRENCY MARKET”

“KEDIA STOCK & COMMODITIES RESEARCH PVT LTD”

STERLING INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT STUDIES

Other objectives include:

The Kedia commodity is a private ltd company and it has proprietorship.

The members are:

 Mr. Ajay Kedia

 Mr. Vijay Kedia

Benefits given by company:

The company provided various benefits to me

 I got the actual idea of the corporate world.

 I got the knowledge about financial market that how it actually

 Got a brief insight of technicalities of the Financial Market and

Sr.no. Topics Page no.

14 Leading Economic Indicators 61

International trade (in the currency markets)

One needs to invest to:

1. earn return on your idle resources

2. generate a specified sum of money for a specific goal in life

3. make a provision for an uncertain future

The three golden rules for all investors are:

3. Invest for long term and not short term

Meaning of Interest and Factors determining Rates of Interest:

terms of the loan.

“India has the third largest economy in the world measured by

Factors determining interest rates:

One can invest in:

Various Short-term financial options available for Investment:

Various Long-term financial options available for Investment:

 Public Provident Fund:

 Company Fixed Deposits:

resource, time or knowledge constraints. Benefits include professional money management,

“80% - the amount of capitalization represented by the FTSE 100 on

Types of Financial Market:

Foreign exchange market

Securities one can invest in:

Segments of Securities Market:

The securities market has two interdependent segments:

1. The primary (new issues) market and

2. The secondary market.

What are the different kinds of issues?

Primarily, issues can be classified as a Public, Rights or Preferential issues

simpler. The classification of issues is illustrated below:

Initial Public Offering (IPO) is when an unlisted company makes either a

A follow on public offering (Further Issue) is when an already listed

Rights Issue is when a listed company which proposes to issue fresh

A Preferential issue is an issue of shares or of convertible securities by

by the trading members of NSE.

Screen Based Trading:

Factors Influencing Price of a Stock:

Bid and Ask price:

Bid (Buy side) Ask (Sell side)

difference the more liquid or highly traded is the stock.

specific date in the future at today’s pre-agreed price.

“2008 - The year oil reached $100 a barrel”

Holds funds in an account Hold securities in an account

Facilitates transfers without Transfers securities between

Facilitates safekeeping of Facilitates transfers of ownership

Transfers funds between Facilitates safekeeping of shares.

The benefits of investing in Mutual Funds:

There are several benefits from investing in a Mutual Fund:

Professional Fund Management: Professionals having considerable expertise, experience and