Moving averages are one of the most basic and widely used series of indicators by technical analysts of the Forex market. Moving averages are used to confirm existing trends, identify new trends that are possibly emerging, and to attempt to identify trends that are coming to an end before a market correction.

This knowledge can help a trader make smart trades in order to take advantage of the Forex market. When talking about moving averages, there are three main types of moving averages that you'll see used: Simple, Weighted, and Exponential.

Simple Moving Average

A simple moving average is one that gives equal weight to every price point over the specified period being studied. The analyst can decide whether to use the high, low, or close prices, and then all the price points are added together and averaged out. After using the averages a line is formed.

Depending on the moving average you are using, you may have a line for the "high" averages and the "low" averages. Every new price point that gets added replaces the oldest point and the line adjusts accordingly.

This should provide you a "tunnel" for the highs and lows. Whenever the price of a currency pair approaches or goes outside of these lines, this will provide you strong clues as to what the market will do next, and what actions you should go through with to take advantage.

Weighted Moving Average

A weighted moving average does the same basic thing as a simple moving average, but as its name suggests a weighted moving average gives more emphasis to the most recent data. Basically the closer to present time the data takes place, the more the value of the data point.

This total is also added together then divided by the sum of the weighted factors. The major benefit of a weighted moving average is that it allows the user to smooth out a curve while keeping the "average" more closely related to the most current information.

Exponential Moving Average

An exponential moving average is a different way of weighing more current data. An exponential moving average multiplies a percentage of the most current price by the previous period's average price.

Basically the oldest pieces of data are never removed, the way they are with other types of moving averages. Instead of replacing the oldest pieces of data with newer, the oldest pieces are given less and less value, creating an average that appears more like an exponential curve.