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Forex Assets

AUD/HRK – Analyzing The Costs Involved While Trading This Exotic Pair

Introduction

The abbreviation of AUD/HRK is Australian Dollar, paired with the Croatian Kuna. Here AUD is the official currency of Australia and is also the fifth most traded currency in the Foreign Exchange market. In contrast, HRK stands for the Kuna, and it is the official currency of Croatia. The Croatian National Bank issues this currency.

Understanding AUD/HRK

In the Forex market, to determine the relative value of one currency, we need another currency to compare. Here, when we buy a currency, which is known as the base currency and simultaneously sell the quote currency. The market value of AUD/HRK helps us to understand the strength of HRK against the AUD. So if the exchange rate for the pair AUD/HRK is 4.5571, it means to buy 1 AUD, we need 4.5571 HRK.

Spread

A spread is defined as the difference between the purchasing & selling price of a Forex pair. In simple words, it is the difference between the bid price and the ask price of an asset. Below is the spread charges for ECN and STP brokers for AUD/HRK pair.

ECN: 40 pips | STP: 43 pips

Fees

A Fee is the charges that we traders pay to the broker for executing a trade. Fees to a much depend on the type of broker(STP/ECN) we use.

Slippage

When we want to execute a trade at a particular market rate, but instead, the trade gets executed at a different rate, and that is because of the slippage. Slippage occurs when we counter a volatile market, and when we execute a large order at the same time.

Trading Range in AUD/HRK

The trading range here will determine the amount of money we will win or lose in a given amount of time. In the below table, we have the representation of the minimum, average, and maximum pip movement in a currency pair. Here we will use the ATR indicator that indicates the price movement in a currency pair. We will evaluate it merely by using it with 200-period SMA.

Procedure to assess Pip Ranges

  1. Add the ATR indicator to your chart
  2. Set the period to 1
  3. Add a 200-period SMA to this indicator
  4. Shrink the chart so you can assess a significant period
  5. Select your desired timeframe
  6. Measure the floor level and set this value as the min
  7. Measure the level of the 200-period SMA and set this as the average
  8. Measure the peak levels and set this as Max.

AUD/HRK Cost as a Percent of the Trading Range

The cost of trade depends on the broker type and varies based on the volatility of the market. The overall cost of trade includes spread, fees, and sometimes slippage if the volatility is more. To decrease the cost of the trade, we can use limit orders instead of market execution.

ECN Model Account

Spread = 40 | Slippage = 3 |Trading fee = 5

Total cost = Slippage + Spread + Trading Fee = 3 + 40 + 5 = 48

STP Model Account

Spread = 43| Slippage = 3 | Trading fee = 0

Total cost = Slippage + Spread + Trading Fee = 3 + 43 + 0 = 46

Trading the AUD/HRK

AUD/HRK is an exotic currency pair. As we can see, the average pip movement in 1hr is 133, which implies higher volatility. The higher the volatility, the higher is the risk and lower is the cost of the trade and vice versa. Taking an example, we can see from the trading range that when the pip movement is lower, the charge is high, and when the pip movement is high, the charge is low.

To reduce our costs of trade, we may place trades using limit orders instead of market orders. In the below table, we will see the representation of the cost percentages when limit orders are used. As we can see, the cost of slippage is zero. In doing so, the slippage will not be included in the calculation of the total costs. And this will help us in reducing the trading cost by a considerable margin. An example of the same is given below.

ECN Model Account (Using Limit Orders)

Spread = 40 | Slippage = 0 |Trading fee = 5

Total cost = Slippage + Spread + Trading Fee = 0 + 40 + 5 = 45

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Forex Assets

Trading The USD/HRK Forex Currency Pair

Introduction

USDHRK is the abbreviation for the United States Dollar against the Croatian Kuna. Thw USDHRK is an emerging currency pair. Unlike the major/minor currency pair, this pair has high volatility and low liquidity. The volume is less too. Here, USD is the base currency, and HRK is the quote currency.

Understanding USD/HRK

The value of this pair determines the value of HRK equivalent to one USD. It is simply quoted as 1 USD per X HRK. For example, if the value of this pair is 6.6123, then 6.6123 Kuna is required to buy one US Dollar.

Spread

Spread is the way through which retail brokers make money from their clients. And it is through the difference between the bid price and the ask price in the market. This value is set by the brokers and varies from the type of execution model they use.

ECN: 25 pips | STP: 30 pips

Fees

A fee is basically the commission that you are liable to pay one each trade you make. This is similar to the one that is levied by stockbrokers. However, the fee is charged only by ECN brokers. There is no fee as such in STP accounts.

Slippage

In market orders, when you execute a trade, you don’t get the exact executed price. The actual executed price is different. This difference between the prices is what is known as slippage. Market volatility and the broker’s execution speed are two factors that affect the slippage on the trade.

Trading Range in USD/HRK

The minimum, average, and maximum volatility can be used to determine the risk of a trade. The profit/loss can be simply calculated by multiplying the volatility value with the pip value (per standard lot).

Procedure to assess Pip Ranges

  1. Add the ATR indicator to your chart
  2. Set the period to 1
  3. Add a 200-period SMA to this indicator
  4. Shrink the chart so you can assess a large time period
  5. Select your desired timeframe
  6. Measure the floor level and set this value as the min
  7. Measure the level of the 200-period SMA and set this as the average
  8. Measure the peak levels and set this as Max.

USD/HRK Cost as a Percent of the Trading Range

The total cost of the trade can be found as the sum of spread, slippage, and trading fee. This total cost is variable and is dependent on the volatility of the market. Below is the representation of the variation in the costs for different volatilities and timeframes.

ECN Model Account

Spread = 25 | Slippage = 3 |Trading fee = 3

Total cost = Slippage + Spread + Trading Fee = 3 + 25 + 3 = 31

STP Model Account

Spread = 30 | Slippage = 3 | Trading fee = 0

Total cost = Slippage + Spread + Trading Fee = 3 + 30 + 0 = 33

The Ideal way to trade the USD/HRK

The percentages in the above tables depict how the cost varies on the trade. The higher the value, the higher is the cost of the trade. Similarly, the smaller the percentages, the lower is the costs.

From the above tables, it can be ascertained that the costs are high for low volatilities, as the percentage values are high in the min column. And the costs are lower for high volatilities. So, the ideal way to trade this pair is dependent on the type of trader you are. For instance, a trader who is particular about costs may trade when the volatility of the currency pair is high. The traders who wish to keep a balance between the two may trade during those times when the volatility is around the average values.

Moreover, one may reduce their costs by trading using limit or stop orders instead of market orders. This will cut off the slippage factor on the trade and bring down the total costs pretty much. An example of the same is given below.

Spread = 25 | Slippage = 0 |Trading fee = 3

Total cost = Slippage + Spread + Trading Fee = 0 + 25 + 3 = 28