FOREX markets turn over trillions of dollars per day and are the world's biggest investment medium.

In recent years, FOREX trading systems using technical analysis to predict trend changes have become increasingly popular as a way of catching the big profitable trends.

Catching the Longer Term Trends for Big Profits

The longer-term trends in FOREX markets mirror the underlying health of the economy. As periods of expansion and contraction take years, so do currency trends and a good FOREX trading system can help you lock into, and profit from, these trends.

When picking a currency to trade, it is important to have good long-term trends and liquidity.

Good major currencies to trade include the US Dollar, Swiss Franc, Euro, Japanese Yen, British Pound, and Canadian Dollar.

FOREX trading systems remove the emotional component from trading, which is the major reason the majority of traders lose.

Removing the Emotion from Trading with Systems

One of the best starting points on the effect that emotions have in trading, are the works of legendary trader W. D Gann, whose works on the subject are essential reading.

Other authors worth reading are: Edwin Lefeurve, Jake Bernstein, Larry Williams, Ken Roberts, Van Tharpe and Jack Shwager whose book "Market Wizards & The New Market Wizards" interviews some of the top traders of all time, including the legendary "turtles".

FOREX Trading Systems for Profit

The developments in computer software, and the growth of the Internet, have seen system trading reach a wider audience than ever before.

Packages such as Tradestation, Supercharts and Omni trader, allow traders to build and back test systems, using technical indicators such as stochastics, Bollinger bands, moving averages, RSI etc., to realistically see how the system would have performed in the markets over time.

Traders who do not have the time, or inclination, to develop their own FOREX Trading systems, can buy a variety of systems off the shelf.

What Makes A Successful FOREX Trading System?

If you are buying a FOREX trading system from a vendor, there are several things to consider:

1. Do you want to be a day trader, or a longer-term trader? You need to pick a system that suits your personality.

2. Do you want to have any manual input into the system, or do you want it to make all the decisions for you?

3. Do you want to trade just one currency, or a spread? Trading one currency can increase the profit potential, but keep in mind that it can also increase the risk.

4. What is the logic of the system? It is a fact, that if you understand the system and its logic, you will have more confidence in it, than if you buy a black box system where the logic concealed.

5. What is the profit potential and what are the drawdowns? The important point here is that any system will have periods of drawdown or losses, and you need to be able to have the confidence to follow the system through good periods and bad. Generally, the bigger the profit potential, the bigger the drawdowns tend to be.

When you are buying from a vendor, check out their experience, record of accomplishment, customer support etc., and make sure you are comfortable with them.