When it comes to Forex trading, there are two markets that you can trade money in: minor and major markets. Major markets are the major countries' currencies, and include currencies such as US Dollars and Euros. Minor markets can be distinguished as second world countries' currencies, and include currencies such as the Korean Won and New Taiwan Dollar. When you are trading Forex, its important to know which market you should trade in, and the significant differences between the two.

The reason there are two markets is to prevent investors from taking advantage of trading major established currencies against developing countries' currencies, which are often very volatile. For example, if you had prior knowledge that a third world country was about to experience a war or their government was about to be overthrown, you could take advantage of this by trading that countries currency against the US Dollar, then trading back after the crisis sent the other currency plummeting.

The majority of Forex trading is done in the Major market, because it is so much more stable than the Minor market. For example, the US Dollar is considered the most stable currency in existence, and the fact that it survived multiple wars and crisis's proves that it is able to stand the test of time. If a new investor was looking for a relatively safe investment, he/she could trade US Dollars against Euros, and be very confident that at the worst, he/she will experience a small loss because both currencies are very stable.

However, for all those traders who decide to invest in the Minor market, make sure to be very careful. The spreads in the Minor market are very big, so it takes a significant swing in currency value to make a profit on a Minor market trade. Also, since some Minor currencies can quickly lose all of their value (think a war or invasion), you can lose a vast amount of money basically overnight.

For a beginning trader, I recommend starting, even staying, in the Major market to get some Forex experience. You will be able to make lots of trades, because even if you are losing money, you will lose it very slowly. Plus, once you learn the rules of the game, and learn how to interpret charts, you'll be able to learn the market and start making money.

As you become profitable in the Major market, you can start using leverage to increase your profits. For those investors who like more of a "gamble", using leverage in the Major markets is still much safer than trading in the Minor markets, where currencies live and die every day.

Many Forex brokers, such as EasyForex.com, allow users to trade either Major or Minor currencies, but almost all of them encourage trade in the Major markets, especially for beginner traders.

Here you have a full list of the respective major and minor currencies:

Major Currencies:

US Dollars
Euros
Gold Ounces
Silver Ounces
Canadian Dollars
Japanese Yen
British Pound
Swiss Franc
Australian Dollar
South African Rand

Minor Currencies:

Indonesian Rupiah
Korean Won
Thai Baht
New Taiwan Dollar
Indian Rupee
Malaysian Ringgit
Philippine Peso
New Mexican Peso
Brazilian Real
Argentine Peso
Chilean Peso
Columbian Peso
New Peruvian Sol
Russian Rouble
Czech Koruna
Polish Zloty
Hungarian Forint
Slovak Koruna