MACRO: The longest-term trader who bases their trade decisions on fundamental analysis. A macro trade’s holding period can last anywhere from around six months to multiple years.

MANUFACTURING PRODUCTION: Measures the total output of the manufacturing aspect of the Industrial Production figures. This data only measures the 13 sub-sectors that relate directly to manufacturing. Manufacturing makes up approximately 80% of total Industrial Production.

MARGIN CALL: A request from a broker or dealer for additional funds or other collateral on a position that has moved against the customer.

MARKET MAKER: A dealer who regularly quotes both bid and ask prices and is ready to make a two-sided market for any financial product.

MARKET ORDER: An order to buy or sell at the current price.

MARKET-TO-MARKET: Process of re-evaluating all open positions in light of current market prices. These new values then determine margin requirements.

MATURITY: The date of settlement or expiry of a financial product.

MEDLEY REPORT: Refers to Medley Global Advisors, a market consultancy that maintains close contacts with central bank and government officials around the world. Their reports can frequently move the currency market as they purport to have inside information from policy makers. The accuracy of the reports has fluctuated over time, but the market still pays attention to them in the short-run.

 

MODELS: Synonymous with black box. Systems that automatically buy and sell based on technical analysis or other quantitative algorithms.

MOM: Abbreviation for month-over-month, which is the change in a data series relative to the prior month’s level.

MOMENTUM: A series of technical studies (e.g. RSI, MACD, Stochastics, Momentum) that assesses the rate of change in prices.

MOMENTUM PLAYERS: Traders who align themselves with an intra-day trend that attempts to grab 50-100 pips.