Six vital numbers for a forex spread better

What should spread betters keep an eye on to spot the next move in their favourite currency? Here are six vital numbers that can all influence an exchange rate.

All eyes are on Japan. The yen has been surging recently, driven in large part by hedge funds rushing to back out of currency trades (see my video tutorial What is a carry trade? for more on this) and other speculators punting at their expense.

But these are hardly normal times for the beleaguered Japanese currency, so few of the normal trading rules apply. But once the extreme situation in Japan has been resolved, what should a trader keep an eye on to spot the next move in their favourite currency, whether that be the US or Australian dollar, sterling or the euro? Here are six vital numbers that can all influence an exchange rate.

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Tim graduated with a history degree from Cambridge University in 1989 and, after a year of travelling, joined the financial services firm Ernst and Young in 1990, qualifying as a chartered accountant in 1994.

He then moved into financial markets training, designing and running a variety of courses at graduate level and beyond for a range of organisations including the Securities and Investment Institute and UBS. He joined MoneyWeek in 2007.