This week's newsletter is going to focus on Forex websites I visit frequently when gathering necessary information needed in making short term trading decisions. I would suggest that you visit a few of these websites, and if you find the information useful, cut and paste the links into a document for use as a daily Forex checklist. I use a daily Forex checklist to help me stay focused. Because of the vast amount of information available on the internet, this task needs to be as organized as possible. Much like a pilot needs to prepare a pre-flight checklist, a trader needs to make the trading day a repeatable routine which includes checking account balances, positions and orders from the previous day, and any potential market moving reports that could change the sentiment of the currency traders. Having a checklist helps make the routine become a good habit.


News Headlines

Bloomberg.com – The Breaking News headlines section is based on the current trading session. As the day moves from Asia to Europe to the Americas, the quote boards for each regions equity indexes, futures, currencies and bonds are highlighted.


Market News International

This service is available as a news feed from several Forex platforms. The best feature is the information on large barrier options which can act as resistance or support. The service also provides information from trading desks as to large bids and offers.


Calendars

Forexfactory.com

This website has a customizable calendar which allows you to view the data release times in your own time zone. The calendar is one of several that explains the details of each report, the expected impact of the report, and it also covers the reasons why a Forex trader should pay attention to the report.


Forex Economic Calendar

Very simple to use website with links to all the key US economic indicators in addition to a world calendar, FX market trading hours and bank holidays.


Best Overall Forex Website

FXstreet.com

This website offers several excellent features. In fact, it is the most complete website of all the others I use everyday. The headline news section is every bit as good as the others mentioned. The fundamental section has a great daily calendar, as well as links to current world interest rates, and all the economic indicators and reports in one place. The technical section provides trader sentiment, currencies at a glance which includes heat maps for measuring relative strength. The Trading Tools section has an interactive Fibonacci Calculator, Money Management Calculator, and a Pivot Point Calculator. The Brokers & FDMS section is a must visit for every trader to compare their broker to other available brokers. With all the changes to the rules recently by the NFA, this is the most complete and up-to-date information for a Forex trader to check to see how the US Forex brokers plan to comply with the new rules starting on August 2, 2009. Be sure to read Francesc's Weblog. Francesc Riverola is the CEO and Founder of FXstreet.com.


New Forex Website

Finviz.com

This website is a great resource for equity traders. FINVIZ has added a Forex section recently offering quotes, performance data, and charts. The performance data is available for 9 pairs and it shows the data as a percent change or pip change covering every time frame from 5 minutes to year to date.