Article: Back to School: Learn to Trade Futures and Options Without Getting Scammed

So, consider treating a margin shortfall as a wake-up call that you’ve become emotionally attached to a position that’s not working as planned. Rather than transferring additional funds to meet the call or shrinking your open positions to reduce your margin requirement, you may be better off exiting the losing position completely. As the old trading expression goes, “cut your losses,” and look for the next trading opportunity. Committing to an exit strategy in advance can help protect you from significant contrary moves.

Before the expiration date, you can decide to liquidate your position or roll it forward. The small tick size of a quarter point makes it relatively easy for futures day traders to manage their risks with little capital requirements. If you are looking for the most liquid futures contracts specific to the Chicago Mercantile Exchange , here you go. Well in this article, we are going to highlight the 10 most liquid futures contracts around the world. Third-party research and tools are obtained from companies not affiliated with TD Ameritrade, and are provided for informational purposes only. TD Ameritrade does not guarantee its accuracy, completeness, or suitability for any purpose, and makes no warranties with respect to the results to be obtained from its use. Please consult other sources of information and consider your individual financial position and goals before making an independent investment decision.

Best Fractional Share Brokerages to Buy Partial Stocks & ETFs

A minimum net liquidation value of $25,000 to trade futures in an IRA. Only SEP, Roth, traditional, and rollover IRAs are eligible for futures trading. Once your account is open, you can select the futures contract you’d like to buy or sell. For example, if you want to bet on the price of gold climbing by the end of the year, you best futures to trade could buy the December gold futures contract. If you buy the contract, you’re agreeing to pay a certain price on a certain date. If you sell a contract, you’re agreeing to provide the underlying asset at the specified price. Interactive Brokers caters to high-volume traders and is the cheapest way to trade futures on our list.

Matt writes a weekly investment column (“Ask a Fool”) that is syndicated in USA Today, and his work has been regularly featured on CNBC, Fox Business, MSN Money, and many other major outlets. He’s a graduate of the University of South Carolina and Nova Southeastern University, and holds a graduate certificate in financial planning from Florida State University. Futures are agreements to sell a fixed amount of an asset at a specific date in the future — instead of buying a commodity, currency, or other asset at today’s market price. The Tastyworks platform is specifically designed for options and futures trading, with tons of unique features and excellent pricing.

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