If you’ve explored getting into foreign exchange, or forex, trading at any point, you may have been surprised at how easy it is to get started. There are a number of websites that offer forex trading and signups are simple.

Forex trading accounts can be opened with as little as $100 or so, and you may be in before you know it. But are all of the free charts and market analysis that a forex site might provide you with enough?

To really be up on potential market trends and developments, there are a few additional areas in which you’ll want to be well-aware.

You’ll want to read up on politics, economics, and business to familiarize yourself with the big picture — all of these things can have a significant impact on forex trading conditions.

The more you know, the better equipped you will be to recognize and take advantage of good markets while avoiding poor markets.

Politics

A country’s political climate can have important repercussions on their currency. If you’re involved in forex trading, you’ll want to know about major events affecting a country, forces acting within the country and outside it.

Things like elections, coups, wars, natural disasters, and environmental disasters may have an influence on a country’s currency. The more you know about a country’s political arena, the better you can judge short term and long term prospects and buy and sell accordingly.

Economics

Many countries publish economic reports issued by the government on a regular basis. Get to know what reports are commonly issued by each country and when they are issued. Learn what economic indicators are measured.

Find out if there are any non-governmental organizations that measure economic indicators and issue them on a set schedule. You see noticeable changes to forex trends that occur the days immediately before or after the announcement of economic measurements.

By keeping track of these economic announcements and watching for the associated trends, you may be able to take advantage of prime market conditions and benefit financially.

Business

In addition to political and economic news, avid forex traders would do well to be familiar with other countries’ general business reports, business trends, and investors’ psychology.

Business developments and market news, positive and negative, can also influence forex trading. Awareness of major business news can put forex traders in the enviable position of being in the right place at the right time to make money.

If you’re serious about forex trading, you’ll need to go beyond simply reviewing the at-hand market analysis and real-time numbers. You’ll need to expand your horizons and read up on politics, economics, and business.

The more you can get the big picture, the more potential you have to score big in the forex trading markets.

Sure, you can do forex trading with just the information given to you by your forex trading site, but think of the potential if you could do it yourself, judging when to buy and sell based on your own observations of market and economic indicators.