Foreign exchange of currencies can be dated back to ancient times, when merchants of different sorts traded coins from country to country. In ancient Egypt the first coins were used, and paper notes were added later on by the Babylonians. The history of Forex continues in the middle ages when foreign exchange was maintained by international banks. This enabled a growth of the European powers and contributed to the spread of foreign currencies throughout Europe and the middle east. The history of Forex is therefore perhaps the longest of all the other markets, and this is one of the advantages of Forex over other market options.
1816-The Gold Standard Changes Forex History The gold standard was a trading standard that was used as a fixed value for trading commodities. This means a certain weight in gold was established and used to trade for other currencies. This started to be in use in 1816, when the British pound was defined as 123.27 grains of gold. This meant that the British banks had a specific value that was defined and this in turn helped set the UK standard currency as stable.
Simplified..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 would be twice in value when exchanged with the currency of country B.
The US and the rest of the world adopted the gold standard by 1880. Under the gold exchange, currencies gained a new phase of stability as they were backed by the price of gold. But the gold exchange standard didn’t lack faults. As an economy strengthened, it would import heavily from abroad until it ran down its gold reserves required to back its money; consequently, the money supply would shrink, interest rates rose and economic activity slowed to the extent of recession. Ultimately, prices of goods had hit bottom, appearing attractive to other nations, who would rush into buying sprees that injected the economy with gold until it increased its money supply, and drive down interest rates and recreate wealth into the economy. Such boom-bust patterns prevailed throughout the gold standard until the outbreak of World War I interrupted trade flows and the free movement of gold and the European nations stopped using the gold standard.
Up until WWII, Great Britain's currency, the Great British Pound, was the major currency by which most currencies were compared. This changed when the Nazi campaign against Britain included a major counterfeiting effort against its currency. The UK had suffered a great financial blow and its economical state was disastrous. In fact, WWII vaulted the U.S. dollar from a failed currency after the stock market crash of 1929 to a benchmark currency by which most other international currencies were compared.
At a conference held at Bretton Woods in New Hampshire in 1944, a new international financial framework was introduced specifically to stabilize world trade and the global economic situation. Particularly affected were Europe and Japan.
The conference resulted in the creation of:
The World Bank International Monetary Fund (IMF), and Bretton Woods Exchange System
The World Bank and the International Monetary Fund are collectively known as the Bretton Woods Institutions. Under the Bretton Woods Exchange System, the base currency, being the US Dollar, was pegged to the value of gold at a rate of $35 per ounce. Other currencies were then pegged to the US Dollar and allowed to fluctuate 1% either way. However, this fixed exchange rate system allowed any country to devalue or revalue its currency to fulfill the local financial and economic needs, particularly to make their exports more competitive in the global market. The massive US balance of payments deficits of early 1960's began casting shadows of doubt in the strength of the US dollar.
During the same decade, the currency crisis in Europe, mainly in the United Kingdom, France and Germany brought about the end of the Bretton Woods accord.
The United States, under president Nixon, reacted in 1971 by devaluing the dollar and forcing realignment of currencies with the dollar. The Bretton Woods Accord was thereby replaced by the Smithsonian Agreement. It was similar to the Bretton Woods Accord in that it worked on a fixed rate but was not backed by gold and also allowed for a 2.5% fluctuation instead of the previous 1%.
In 1972, the European community tried to move away from its dependency on the dollar. The European Joint Float was established by West Germany, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxemburg. The agreement was similar to the Bretton Woods Accord, but allowed a greater range of fluctuation in the currency values.
Both agreements made mistakes similar to the Bretton Woods Accord and collapsed. The collapse of the Smithsonian agreement and the European Joint Float in 1973 signified the official switch to the free-floating system. This occurred by default, as there were no new agreements to take their place. Governments were now free to peg their currencies, semi-peg or allow them to freely float. In 1978, the free-floating system was officially mandated.
This market is popularly known as the International Monetary Market or IMM. This IMM is not a single entity. It is a collection of all financial institutions that have any interest in foreign currencies all over the world. Banks, Brokerages, Fund Managers, Government Central Banks and sometimes individuals are just a few examples of these institutions.
In a final effort to gain independence from the dollar, Europe created the European Monetary System in July of 1978. Like all of the previous agreements, it failed in 1993.
Forex History Changes With The Introduction of The Internet.During 1994, online currency trading made its debut, with the first online Forex transaction done. Since then, the market has grown to what it is today, with a total circle of more than $2.5 trillion every day. The big change in Forex history is that now anyone could participate and invest in the market. The vast amount of people trading online Forex is due mostly to the option of margin investments that are available with online Forex trading.
On January 1, 2002, the history of Forex trading was changed with the introduction of the Euro as the official currency between twelve European nations. The Euro is now the second most frequently traded currency in Forex markets. The countries first added to the Euro currency were: Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal and Spain.
London was, and remains the principal offshore market. In the 1980s, it became the key center in the Eurodollar market when British banks began lending dollars as an alternative to pounds in order to maintain their leading position in global finance. London’s convenient geographical location (operating during Asian and American markets) is also instrumental in preserving its dominance in the Euromarket.
Today, the major currencies, such as the U.S. dollar, Euro, British pound, Swiss franc and the Japanese yen, move independently from other currencies. The currencies are traded by anyone who wishes, including an influx of speculation by banks, hedge funds, brokerage houses and individuals. Only on occasion do some of the central banks intervene to move or attempt to move currencies to their desired levels. The underlying factor that drives today's forex markets, however, is supply and demand. The free-floating system is ideal for today's forex markets. The supply and demand of currencies are driven by three factors, including interest rates and interest rate differentials, commodities and global trade.
The forex market is the prime market of the world by all which all others can be considered derivatives (like futures and options).
With this growing volume, 24 hour convenience, the ability to trade anywhere in the world, ease of access to data and information and the leveraged margin accounts from retail brokers, this market is an ideal trading arena.
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