Now, It's Easier to Trade Foreign Stocks Electronically Online

From the Seattle Post Intelligencer...

NEW YORK -- E-Trade Financial Corp. unveils a global trading platform today that makes it the first U.S. discount brokerage to give customers the ability to trade foreign-listed stocks online. The pilot project, which begins with 1,000 E-Trade customers this week, allows them to buy, hold and sell stocks in Canada, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan and Britain.

The rollout is expected to take two months before all customers have access, and could expand to 42 international markets.

The launch unlocks thousands of stocks previously unavailable to online traders, and pressures top rivals Charles Schwab Corp. and TD Ameritrade Holding Corp. to make similar moves.

It also comes as stock exchanges in Asia have bounced to unprecedented highs and far outpaced Western markets.

NOTE: This is not an endorsement of E-Trade as a particular trading platform. It just shows an example of what's out there. If your broker doesn't allow you to trade foreign stocks online, maybe it's time you asked: "Why not?"

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