EUR/USD Spread Betting


cf_market_short Trading Guide

The CleanFinancial guide to EUR/USD spread betting.


Live EUR/USD Chart & Prices

The CFD trading chart below will also offer you a handy guide to the EUR/USD FX rate.


The Plus 500 chart above typically tracks the EUR/USD futures price.

If you would like to analyse real-time spread betting prices and charts for EUR/USD, you will probably need a spread betting account.

A spreads account would also let you speculate on the shorter-term daily markets. Users should note that opening a spreads account is normally subject to status and suitability checks.

Should your new account be approved then, after logging in, you will be able to see the live prices and charts. These are usually provided as part of the service. So what’s the catch? You are likely to receive the odd boring email or sales call from your spread betting provider.

Of course, if you do trade, remember that financial spread trading and contracts for difference carry a significant level of risk and can result in losses that exceed your initial deposit.



EUR/USD Comparison

A forex comparison table covering EUR/USD and other popular markets:

Typical In-Hours Spread Sizes

EUR / USD Daily 0.7 1 0.7 0.7
GBP / USD Daily 1 1.5 0.9 0.9
EUR / GBP Daily 0.8 1.3 1.5 0.9
USD / JPY Daily 0.8 1 0.9 0.7
Forex – Minimum Stake £1 £1 £0.5 £1
Comparison Notes.


Where Can I Spread Bet on EUR/USD?

You can spread bet on EUR/USD, EUR/GBP, GBP/USD and a wide variety of other markets, with:



EUR/USD Market Analysis and Trading News

5 May 2018, 12:56pm, Updated Euro COT Report

The latest Commitments of Traders Report (COT) for the Euro has been released by the CFTC, please see our Euro COT report below.

Readers should note that we have also updated our Forex COT Summary Report.

Update by Gordon Childs, Editor, CleanFinancial
5 May 2018, 8:17pm, Updated Euro COT Report

The latest Commitments of Traders Report (COT) for the Euro has been released by the CFTC, please see our Euro COT report below.

Readers should note that we have also updated our Forex COT Summary Report.

Update by Gordon Childs, Editor, CleanFinancial

» More forex trading views and analysis.




Where Can I Trade EUR/USD for Free?

Trading the forex markets always involves an element of risk. However, if you want to try a completely free Demo Account, that lets you practice your spread trading, see below for further details.

When looking at which forex option is right for you, don’t forget that financial spread betting in the UK is tax free*, i.e. it is exempt from capital gains tax, stamp duty and income tax.

If you are looking for a free forex website then note that you are able to financial spread bet on EUR/USD without having to pay any brokers’ fees or commissions via:


Free Demo Account

If you’d like to open a virtual money Demo Account to get a feel for spread betting, and speculating on markets such as the DAX 30, gold and EUR/USD, then it’s worth taking a closer look at:

The firms listed above provide a free Test Account which lets users gain experience with trading orders, study professional charts and try out new trading ideas.


How to Spread Bet on EUR/USD?

As with many global markets, you can speculate on forex pairs, like EUR/USD, to rise or fall.

If you log in to Financial Spreads, you can see they are currently pricing the EUR/USD Rolling Daily market at $1.28609 – $1.28619. Therefore, an investor could spread bet on the EUR/USD rate:

  EUR/USD Spread Betting Example Rising above $1.28619, or
  EUR/USD Spread Trading Example Falling below $1.28609

When placing a spread bet on EUR/USD, you trade in £x per point where a point is $0.00010 of the pairs movement. As a result, should you choose to risk £4 per point and EUR/USD moves 32.0 points then that would make a difference to your profits (or losses) of £128. £4 per point x $0.00320 = £4 per point x 32.0 points = £128.

Rolling Daily Foreign Exchange Markets

One thing to note is that this is a Rolling Daily Market which means that unlike a normal spread betting futures market, there is no closing date. If a trade is still open when the markets close at the end of the day, it will just roll over into the next trading session.

Should your forex spread bet roll over then you normally pay a small overnight financing fee. For more information, and a look at overnight charges, see Rolling Daily Spread Betting.


EUR/USD Trading Example 1

If we think about the spread of $1.28609 – $1.28619 and assume that:

  • You have completed your forex research, and
  • You feel that the EUR/USD market will move higher than $1.28619
Then you may decide to go long of the market at $1.28619 for a stake of, let’s say, £3 per point.

This means that you make a profit of £3 for every point ($0.00010) that the EUR/USD rate rises above $1.28619. Nevertheless, such a trade also means that you will lose £3 for every point that the EUR/USD market falls below $1.28619.

Considering this from another angle, with spread betting if you ‘Buy’ a market then your P&L is calculated by taking the difference between the closing price of the market and the price you bought the spread at. You then multiply that price difference by your stake.

If after a few sessions the rate started to increase then you might think about closing your position in order to lock-in your profit.

Taking this a step further, if the market did go up then the spread, set by the spread trading company, might change to $1.29063 – $1.29073. In order to close your trade you would sell at $1.29063. So, with the same £3 stake your profit would be calculated as:

P&L = (Closing Price – Opening Price) x stake
P&L = ($1.29063 – $1.28619) x £3 per point stake
P&L = $0.00444 x £3 per point stake
P&L = 44.4 points x £3 per point stake
P&L = £133.20 profit

Speculating on the FX markets is rarely simple. In the above example, you wanted the currency pair to rise. Nevertheless, it can also fall.

If, against your expectations, the EUR/USD rate weakened, you might choose to close your spread bet to limit your losses.

Should the market fall back to $1.28233 – $1.28243 you would sell back your position at $1.28233. That would mean you would make a loss of:

P&L = (Closing Price – Opening Price) x stake
P&L = ($1.28233 – $1.28619) x £3 per point stake
P&L = -$0.00386 x £3 per point stake
P&L = -38.6 points x £3 per point stake
P&L = -£115.80 loss

Note – EUR/USD Rolling Daily spread betting price taken as of 11-Sep-12.


Advert: EUR/USD Spread Betting, sponsored by FinancialSpreads.com.
You can spread bet on EUR/USD with Financial Spreads.




How to Spread Bet on Euro-Dollar

How to Spread Bet on Euro-Dollar – Example 2

If we log in to Financial Spreads, we can see they are showing the Euro-Dollar Rolling Daily market at $1.30665 – $1.30675. Therefore, you could spread bet on the Euro-Dollar rate:

  Euro-Dollar Spread Betting Example Rising above $1.30675, or
  Euro-Dollar Trading Example Falling below $1.30665

Whilst spread betting on Euro-Dollar you trade in £x per point where a point is $0.00010 of the pairs movement.

Therefore, if you choose to invest £4 per point and Euro-Dollar moves 26.0 points then that would be a difference to your profits (or losses) of £104. £4 per point x $0.00260 = £4 per point x 26.0 points = £104.

So, if we take the above spread of $1.30665 – $1.30675 and make the assumptions:

  • You have completed your market analysis, and
  • Your analysis leads you to believe that the Euro-Dollar rate will rise higher than $1.30675
Then you might decide to buy the Euro-Dollar market at $1.30675 for a stake of £2 per point.

With this trade you make a profit of £2 for every point ($0.00010) that the Euro-Dollar pair increases above $1.30675. Having said that, such a bet also means that you will make a loss of £2 for every point that the Euro-Dollar market falls lower than $1.30675.

Looking at this from another angle, if you were to buy a spread bet then your profit/loss is worked out by taking the difference between the closing price of the market and the price you bought the market at. You then multiply that difference in price by your stake.

As a result, if after a few sessions the FX rate started to rise you might decide to close your trade to secure your profit.

Taking this a step further, if the market did go up then the spread, determined by the spread betting company, might change to $1.31165 – $1.31175. In order to close your spread bet you would sell at $1.31165. Therefore, with the same £2 stake you would make:

Profits (or losses) = (Closing Price – Opening Price) x stake
Profits (or losses) = ($1.31165 – $1.30675) x £2 per point stake
Profits (or losses) = $0.00490 x £2 per point stake
Profits (or losses) = 49.0 points x £2 per point stake
Profits (or losses) = £98.00 profit

Of course, the Euro/US Dollar market can move against your position and you could lose. In this example, you wanted the forex pair to increase. However, the currency rate could fall.

If the Euro-Dollar market had fallen then you could close your position in order to restrict your losses.

If the spread fell to $1.30263 – $1.30273 then this means you would close your spread bet by selling at $1.30263. This would result in a loss of:

Profits (or losses) = (Closing Price – Opening Price) x stake
Profits (or losses) = ($1.30263 – $1.30675) x £2 per point stake
Profits (or losses) = -$0.00412 x £2 per point stake
Profits (or losses) = -41.2 points x £2 per point stake
Profits (or losses) = -£82.40 loss

Note: Euro-Dollar Rolling Daily spread betting price accurate as of 18-Sep-12.


Advert: EUR/USD Spread Betting, sponsored by FinancialSpreads.com.
You can spread bet on EUR/USD with Financial Spreads.



Euro Commitments of Traders Report – 15 May 2018 (i)

Futures Only Positions, CME , Code 99741, (Contracts of €125,000) (i)

Reporting Firms (i) Non-Reportable Positions (i)
Non-Commercial (i)
Commercial (i) Total Reportable (i)
 
Commitments (i) Open (i) Interest Commitments
Long (i) Short (i) Spreads (i) Long Short Long Short Long Short
219,317 104,203 12,321 201,322 330,265 432,960 446,789 505,114 72,154 58,325
 
Changes from 8 May 2018 (i) Change in (i) Open Interest Changes from
Long Short Spreads Long Short Long Short Long Short
-7,284 -1,893 657 -210 -12,436 -6,837 -13,672 -10,018 -3,181 3,654
 
Percent of Open Interest for Each Category of Trader (i)
Long Short Spreads Long Short Long Short   Long Short
43.4% 20.6% 2.4% 39.9% 65.4% 85.7% 88.5%   14.3% 11.5%
 
Number of Traders in Each Category (i) Total (i) Traders  
Long Short Spreads Long Short Long Short    
99 58 48 72 63 181 161 260    
 
Long/Short Commitments Ratios (i)   Long/Short Ratio
Ratio   Ratio Ratio   Ratio
2.1:1   1:1.6 1:1   1.2:1
 
Net Commitment Change (i)  
-5,391  

Also see:


Applying Technical Analysis to EUR/USD

Below, an older but nevertheless useful case study on the euro/dollar market by Shai Heffetz, InterTrader, 8-Jun-2011.

The euro/dollar market was in a bull run for most of March and April.

Looking at the chart below, we can clearly see the typical bull market behaviour.

At the end of April / beginning of May the price started moving sideways, and on 4/5 May we saw a major price correction.

On the 5 May the price closed below the blue Kijun Sen line of the Ichimoku Kinko Hyo for the first time in months.

It entered the Ichimoku cloud on the 13th of May and after that traded sideways for a while. On 31 May it formed a new short term high of $1.4458 and broke free from the cloud.

On the 7 June it opened at $1.45798 and climbed further during the day.

According to the chart below, if we only look at the Ichimoku cloud, we are currently back in a bull run. The price has broken upwards out of the cloud again and it is also above the blue Kijun Sen and the red Tenkan Sen lines.

Despite this, a cautious trader will not go long of the Euro at the present time. The red Tenkan Sen line is still below the blue Kijun Sen, which shows that in the short run the bull market has not been fully restored.

The green Chinkou Span line is also below the price 26 periods ago, further strengthening the perception that the market is still in an uncertain phase.

If the price breaks through the level of $1.49389, which it reached on the 4 May, it will provide a clear signal that the bull run has been restored.

Any drop below the blue Kijun Sen line will be an indication of weakness, in which case it would be better to be out of the trade.

Euro - Dollar Forex Spread Betting Chart