21.   An increasing number of grain farmers, according to the Agriculture Department, are taking the partial step of signing forward contracts.

22.   At present, brokerage houses are allowed to buy or sell forward contracts and do currency swaps to assist customers buy or sell foreign securities.

23.   A currency overlay guards against the risk of currency fluctuation by laying forward contracts over the underlying equity investment.

24.   Also, Japanese exporters begin purchasing forward contracts to sell dollars they expect to earn before the new fiscal year begins in April, Kaji said.

25.   Companies like IBM can hedge against those moves by buying forward contracts or options.

26.   Currency risk can be hedged, thanks to ruble futures and forward trading contracts, though hedging costs lower returns.

27.   Elsewhere in Asia, the Indonesian rupiah strengthened against the U.S. dollar after the central bank imposed trading restrictions on rupiah forward contracts.

28.   Faust bought forward contracts, the most common hedge.

29.   Forward contracts involve the exchange of currencies at a set rate on a future date.