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doc: manual: clarify transaction vs market prices

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@ -438,14 +438,19 @@ flag or `real:` query.
#### Prices
<!-- ##### Transaction prices -->
##### Transaction prices
When recording an amount, you can also record its price in another
commodity. This documents an exchange rate that was applied within
this transaction (or to be precise, within the posting). There are
three ways to specify a transaction price:
When recording a transaction, you can also record an amount's price in another commodity.
This documents the exchange rate, cost (of a purchase), or selling price (of a sale) that was in effect within this particular transaction (or more precisely, within the particular posting).
These transaction prices are fixed, and do not change.
1. Write the unit price (exchange rate) explicitly as `@ UNITPRICE` after the amount:
Such priced amounts can be displayed in their transaction price's
commodity, by using the `--cost/-B` flag (B for "cost Basis"),
supported by most hledger commands.
There are three ways to specify a transaction price:
1. Write the unit price (aka exchange rate), as `@ UNITPRICE` after the amount:
```journal
2009/1/1
@ -453,7 +458,7 @@ three ways to specify a transaction price:
assets:cash
```
2. Or write the total price for this amount as `@@ TOTALPRICE`:
2. Or write the total price, as `@@ TOTALPRICE` after the amount:
```journal
2009/1/1
@ -461,7 +466,9 @@ three ways to specify a transaction price:
assets:cash
```
3. Or fully specify all posting amounts using exactly two commodities:
3. Or let hledger infer the price so as to balance the transaction.
To permit this, you must fully specify all posting amounts, and
their sum must have a non-zero amount in exactly two commodities:
```journal
2009/1/1
@ -469,41 +476,51 @@ three ways to specify a transaction price:
assets:cash $-135 ; exchanged for $135
```
You can use the `--cost/-B` flag with reporting commands to see such
amounts converted to their price's commodity. Eg, using any of the above
examples we get:
With any of the above examples we get:
```shell
$ hledger print --cost
$ hledger print -B
2009/01/01
assets:foreign currency $135.00
assets:cash $-135.00
```
##### Prices are fixed
In hledger, the price used in a given posting is fixed.
This is what you want for eg recording purchases made while travelling abroad,
but you can't (yet) track the value of stocks whose price fluctuates.
This is different from Ledger, where prices fluctuate by default.
Ledger has a different syntax for specifying
[fixed prices](http://ledger-cli.org/3.0/doc/ledger3.html#Fixing-Lot-Prices): `{=PRICE}`.
hledger parses that syntax, and (currently) ignores it.
<!-- hledger treats this as an alternate spelling of `@ PRICE`, for greater compatibility with Ledger files. -->
Example use for transaction prices: recording the effective conversion
rate of purchases made in a foreign currency.
##### Market prices
You can record market prices for commodities with a P directive (Ledger calls these historical prices). These will be used by the `-V/--value` option supported by certain commands ([balance](#balance)).
Market prices are not tied to a particular transaction; they represent
historical exchange rates between two commodities, usually from some
public market which publishes such rates.
When market prices are known, the `-V/--value` option will use them to
convert reported amounts to their market value as of the report end
date. This option is currently availabel only with the
[balance](#balance) command.
You record market prices (Ledger calls them historical prices) with a
P directive, in the journal or perhaps in a separate
[included](#include-directive) file. Market price directives have the
format: `P DATE COMMODITYSYMBOL UNITPRICE`
<!-- (A time and numeric time zone are allowed but ignored, like ledger.) -->
For example, the following directives say that the euro's exchange rate was 1.35 US dollars during 2009, and $1.40 from 2010 onward (and unknown before 2009).
```journal
; Market price directives look like: P DATE COMMODITYSYMBOL UNITPRICE
; These say the euro's exchange rate is $1.35 during 2009 and
; $1.40 from 2010/1/1 on.
P 2009/1/1 € $1.35
P 2010/1/1 € $1.40
```
Example use for market prices: tracking the value of stocks.
<!--
This is different from Ledger, where transaction prices fluctuate by
default. Ledger has a different syntax for specifying
[fixed prices](http://ledger-cli.org/3.0/doc/ledger3.html#Fixing-Lot-Prices):
`{=PRICE}`. hledger parses that syntax, and (currently) ignores it.
-->
<!-- hledger treats this as an alternate spelling of `@ PRICE`, for greater compatibility with Ledger files. -->
#### Comments
Lines in the journal beginning with a semicolon (`;`) or hash (`#`) or