How Do You Measure The Size Of An Economy? GDP!

All countries have an economy which presented a need of a way to measure how each country was doing during a specified time. Hardly a new invention, the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), for the United States, was born on January 4, 1934. This came to pass shortly after the Great Depression.

As defined by investopedia.com, Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is “The monetary value of all the finished goods and services produced within a country’s borders in a specific time period, though GDP is usually calculated on an annual basis.” The GDP is the broadest measure of economic activity. As such, it is the primary indicator of the economic health of the applicable country.

Canada’s GDP Report
On Friday, July 31, 2015 at 8:30 AM ET, Canada will release its monthly GDP report. In last month’s report, the reading was down 0.1 percent. Canada attributed that to decreases in mining, quarrying, oil and gas extraction as well as in manufacturing, utilities and construction. However, agriculture and forestry reported increases. This information was reported in the June release, but pertained to April. For this month, it is forecast to be up 0.1 percent. If the reading is higher than expected, regard that as positive for the CAD. If the report comes out lower, it would be considered negative for the CAD.

Trading Suggestion
Since this is a news trade that will probably generate some movement but the direction is unknown, it is best to use a neutral strategy such as an Iron Condor. For this news event, it is suggested that you use Nadex USD/CAD Spreads. Nadex can be traded from 49 countries. You would buy a lower USD/CAD spread and sell an upper USD/CAD spread at the same time. You can enter as early as 8:00 AM ET. Your spreads should have a 10:00 AM ET expiration time. When you are looking for the ideal spread set up, you want the floor of the upper spread to be equal to the ceiling of the lower spread. You should enter your trade when the market is trading as close to where these two spreads meet as possible. You want a minimum profit potential of $25. If all of these conditions are not present, do not force the trade.

Apex Investing just launched a new spread scanner that you can experience for free at www.apexinvesting.com. If you would like to read more about the Iron Condor Strategy, please see The Awesomeness Of An Iron Condor.