Each country issued their own banknotes as currency. Different names were given to them such as Franc, Dinar, Krone, Lira, Peso, Mark, Rial, Pound, Rupee and Ruble. Some countries gave their currencies the same name as, for example, dollar by Canada, the United States, Malaysia, Australia, Zimbabwe and Singapore. A common currency has been adopted by some as Euro for the European Union. International trade in goods and services required the trade to be transacted with their respective currencies. The exchange rates between the currencies of the trading countries required to be fixed. Usually the respective central banks and the governments fixed the rate. The Banks as well as the governments facilitated trade between the respective countries by buying and selling the currency of the other country.
When exports increases, the demand for the currency of the exporting country increases. The value of its currency appreciated. Currency has a floating rate with the demand and supply determining the exchange rate of the currency. With increasing trade and trade in currency, a currency market emerged. Currency itself soon began to be extensively traded as a commodity. Speculators such as money managers and currency traders moved in and trading in currencies by speculators increased. It did not take much time for speculative money trading becoming the major activity in the currency or forex market. Speculation in currencies soon began to exert a major role in determining the value of the currency and its exchange rate.
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China was one of the first countries to introduce paper money in the mid 13th century. Sweden was the first amongst European nations to introduce paper money way back in 1661. This was because it found that its copper based coin system was unmanageable with bigger transactions. It was both easy to produce paper money, and easy to carry them around. The paper money was also backed by the respective government initially with precious metals as gold. Gold standard was usually what the governments adopted till about 1990. Since then, it has got de-linked from gold standard and has become free tender with value controlled by government decree.
