Direct trading is pegged to the US dollar, such as GBP/USD (pounds sterling, US dollars), USD/JPY (US dollars/Japanese yen). If the U.S. economy is not doing well and the U.S. dollar depreciates, the pound will rise against the U.S. dollar. We should go long (buy pounds and sell U.S. dollars). For the U.S. dollar against the yen, we should go short (sell U.S. dollars and buy Japanese yen). As the U.S. economy improves, an appreciation of the U.S. dollar does the opposite. But the participants here include large importers and exporters, central banks of various countries, speculators, etc. Some people will be long on the U.S. dollar, and some will be short on the U.S. dollar. It will almost never be balanced. When the long and short positions are equal, the exchange rate is consolidating. .