Factory Orders An economic indicator that refers to total orders for durable and nondurable goods. The nondurable goods orders consist of food, clothing, light industrial products, and products designed for the maintenance of the durable goods.
FASB # 8 (Financial Accounting Standards Board's Statement Number 8) The original accounting rules regarding foreign exchange were standardized in 1975, which set the procedures for foreign currency translations into U.S. dollars in the consolidated balance sheets of U.S. multinational corporations.
FASB # 52 (Financial Accounting Standards Board's Statement Number 52) A complex set of rules designed in 1981, whose main objective is to move the foreign exchange P&L from current income into shareholders' equity.
Federal funds (Fed funds) Immediately available reserve balances at the federal reserves. The Fed funds are widely used by commercial banks or large corporations to lend to each other on an overnight basis. Although their level is established by the Fed, the prices fluctuate because they are traded in the market.
Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) A committee established in 1935, through the Banking Act, to replace the Open Market Policy Conference (OMPC.) Currently active.
Federal Reserve The central bank of the United States. It was established in 1913 when Congress passed the Federal Reserve Act. The Act held that role of the Federal Reserve was "to furnish an elastic currency, to afford the means of rediscounting commercial paper, to establish a more effective supervision of banking in the United States, and for other purposes."
Federal Reserve Board The board consists of a Governor and four other regular members. The Secretary of the Treasury and the Comptroller of the Currency are closely consulted. The 12 regional Federal Reserve Banks around the country have sufficient autonomy to manage financial conditions in their districts. They are also managed by governors.
Fedwire An automated communications and settlement system linking the Federal Reserve banks with other banks and with depository institutions.
Fence A compound option strategy that consists of either a long currency position—a long out-of-money put and a short out-of-themoney call, where the options have the same expiration date (risk conversion); or a short currency position—a short out-of-the-money put and a long out-of-the-money call, where the options have the same expiration date (risk reversal).
Fibonacci percentage retracements Price retracements of 0.382 and 0.618, or approximately 38 percent and 62 percent.
Fibonacci ratio 0.618 and 0.312.
Fibonacci sequence Takes a sequence of numbers that begins with 1 and adds 1 to it, then takes the sum of this operation (2) and adds it to the previous term in the sequence (1). Next it takes the sum of the second operation (3) and adds it to the previous term in the sequence (the sum of the first operation, i.e., 2). The Fibonacci sequence continues iterating in this manner, adding the most recent sum to the previous term, which is itself the sum of the two previous terms, etc. This yields the following series of numbers: 1 1 2 3 5 8 13 21 34 55 89 144 233 377 610 987 1597 2584 4181 (etc.).
FINEX A currency market that is part of the New York Cotton Exchange (NYCE), the oldest futures exchange in New York. The exchange lists futures on the European Currency Unit and the USDX, a basket of ten currencies: deutsche mark, Japanese yen, French franc, British pound, Canadian dollar, Italian lira, Dutch guilder, Belgian franc, Swedish krona, and Swiss franc.
Fisher effect A theory holding that die nominal interest rate consists of the real interest rate plus the expected rate of inflation.
Flag A continuation formation that resembles the outline of a flag. It consists of a brief consolidation period within a solid and steep upward trend or downward trend. The consolidation itself tends to be sloped in the opposite direction from the slope of the original trend, or simply flat. The consolidation is bordered by a support line and a resistance line, which are parallel to each other or very mildly converging, making it look like a flag (parallelogram). The previous sharp trend is known as the flagpole. When the currency resumes its original trend by breaking out of the consolidation, the price objective is the total length of the flagpole, measured from the breakout price level.
Floor brokers Any individuals on the exchange floor engaged in executing orders for another person. They may also trade for their own accounts, with the primary responsibility of executing the customers' orders first. Brokers are licensed by the federal government.
Floor traders (locals) Exchange members who execute their own trades by being physically present in the pit, or place for futures trading.
Foreign exchange The mechanism that values foreign currencies in terms of another currency.
Foreign exchange brokers Intermediaries among banks who bring together buyers and sellers to the market, optimize the prices they show to their customers, and do not take positions for themselves.
Foreign exchange exposure The potential effect of currency fluctuations on shareholders' equity.
Foreign exchange rate The price of one currency in terms of another.
Forward outright Foreign exchange deal that matures at a day past the spot delivery date (generally two business days).
Forward spread (forward points or forward pips) Forward price used to adjust a spot price to calculate a forward price. It is based on the current spot exchange rate, the interest rate differential, and the number of days to delivery.
Fractal geometry Geometry theory that refers to the fact that certain irregular objects have a fractal number of dimensions. In other words, an object cannot fill an integer number of dimensions.
French-West German Treaty of Cooperation A treaty signed in 1963 by President Charles de Gaulle and Chancellor Konrad Adenauer, which established that West Germany would lead economically through the cold war and France, the former diplomatic powerhouse, would provide the political leadership.
Fuzzy logic Method that attempts to weigh the quality of the patterns recognized by neural networks. Because not all patterns have equal financial significance for foreign currency forecasting, this method qualifies the degree of certainty of the results.