What are traders?

Traders are people who buy and sell things to make money, just like you might trade your favorite toy for a candy bar at recess.

Imagine you're at a lemonade stand. You have extra cups, and your friend has extra lemons. You both want what the other has. So you agree: you give them 2 cups for 1 lemon. That’s trading, swapping one thing for another because it helps both of you.

Traders do this with money, but instead of cups and lemons, they trade stocks, bonds, or even things like gold.

• If a trader thinks the price of something will go up, they buy it now so they can sell it later for more money.
• If they think the price will go down, they might wait to buy until it’s cheaper.

It's like trading lemonade, but instead of cups and lemons, it’s numbers on a screen. And instead of recess, it’s all day long! Traders are people who buy and sell things to make money, just like you might trade your favorite toy for a candy bar at recess.

Imagine you're at a lemonade stand. You have extra cups, and your friend has extra lemons. You both want what the other has. So you agree: you give them 2 cups for 1 lemon. That’s trading, swapping one thing for another because it helps both of you.