Ask
The price at which the market, or your broker, is ready to sell an instrument to you. It always sits slightly above the bid.
Glossary
Every trading term, explained simply
The language of the markets, defined without jargon so you always understand exactly what you are reading.
1,000+Worldwide assets
24/6Specialist support
0%Commission
A
B
Bid
The price at which the market is ready to buy an instrument from you. The gap between the bid and the ask is called the spread.
Bear Market
A long stretch of falling prices during which pessimism drives market sentiment.
Bull Market
A long stretch of rising prices backed by strong investor confidence.
C
CFD
Contract for Difference: a derivative that pays out the change in an asset's price between opening and closing, without owning the asset.
Commodity
A physical raw material that can be traded, such as gold, crude oil, coffee or natural gas.
D
Drawdown
The drop from a portfolio's highest value to its lowest point before a new high is set.
E
Equity
Your account's current value, including all open profit and loss.
F
Forex
The worldwide over-the-counter market where national currencies are traded in pairs.
Fundamental Analysis
Judging an asset's value by looking at economic data, earnings, interest rates and world events.
L
Leverage
Borrowed exposure that lets you control a bigger position with a smaller deposit. It increases both gains and losses.
Liquidity
How easily an instrument can be bought or sold without moving its price much.
Long Position
A trade opened because you expect the price to go up.
Lot
A standard trade size. One standard forex lot is 100,000 units of the base currency.
M
Margin
The part of your balance set aside to keep a leveraged position open.
Margin Call
An alert that your equity has dropped too close to the required margin and positions could be closed.
P
Pip
The smallest standard price change in a currency pair, usually the fourth decimal place.
S
Short Position
A trade opened because you expect the price to go down.
Slippage
The gap between the price you asked for and the price your order was actually filled at.
Spread
The gap between the bid and ask price, which is the cost of opening a trade.
Stop Loss
A pre-set order that automatically closes a losing position at a chosen price to limit risk.
Swap
The interest added or charged when a leveraged position is kept open overnight.
T
Technical Analysis
Predicting where prices will go by studying charts, patterns and statistical indicators.
Take Profit
A pre-set order that secures profit by closing a position once your target price is hit.
V
Volatility
How fast and how far an instrument's price moves over a set period.
Learn it first, then trade it
Try every concept risk-free on a funded demo account.