THE Union Bank of Switzerland (UBS) is the largest foreign exchange trader in Hong Kong, according to AsiaMoney Magazine. Treasury assistant Raymond Fung said one of the reasons it had grown so big was that it could handle the big trades that others could not. 'We are a market maker, which means we quote two-way prices on foreign exchange,' he said. 'While some banks can only quote up to US$10 million, for us, theoretically, there is no limit,' Mr Fung said. As the largest inter-bank dealer, UBS handles about $43 billion in transactions a day. The bank's head of foreign exchange, Wang Kie, said: 'The first impression many people have of foreign exchange is that it is a risk-taking job. 'Most people think that a foreign exchange trader is like a gambler. But a gambler has no control on the outcome, whereas a trader can use his skills to gain an advantage.' Things like information from clients and other brokers, as well as technical analysis, could all help a trader outperform the market, he said. However, there were times when even the best information in the world could not help. Mr Wang said this year had seen some volatile movements in currencies - especially the dollar - due to the rise in interest rates. Foreign exchange fund managers had generally had a bad year because the market conditions had been so poor. 'Most currency fund managers aim to make 15 per cent but, this year, most of them have not met that target,' Mr Wang said.