Tag: Required Margin

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34. Refresher – Margin Trading & All The Topics Involved

Introduction

Introduction

Introduction

We have discussed all the terminologies and concepts related to Margin Trading in the previous articles. In this article, let’s get a quick recap of all these terms with the help of examples.

Let’s go through the steps involved in margin trading with the help of these terms. This exercise will help you in understanding how all of these terms are interrelated.

Let’s say Tom wants to margin trade GBP/USD currency pair. Below is the step-by-step procedure that he should follow.

Step 1: Balance

To start taking positions in his margin account, Tom must first deposit some amount. So, let’s say he has deposited $1,000 in his margin account. Once this amount gets deposited, Tom’s Balance will be $1,000.

Step 2: Required Margin

After depositing, if Tom wishes to go long on GBP/USD, he must know the Required Margin to open a position. Assuming the price of GBP/USD is 1.3150, and he wants to open 10,000 units, the Required Margin, if the Margin Requirement is 2%, is,

Required Margin = Notional Value x Margin Requirement

In terms of USD, Notional value = 10,000 pounds x $1.3150 = $13,150

Hence, the Required Margin will be,

Required Margin = $13,150 x 0.02 (2%) = $263

Step 3: Used Margin

As we know, when there is only one position open, the Used Margin will be equal to the Required Margin. So, here, the Used Margin of Tom’s margin account will be $263.

Step 4: Equity

Initially, let us say that Tom’s trade is in breakeven (no profit no loss). The Equity for this can be obtained using the below formula,

Equity = Balance + Floating P/L

= $1,000 + $0

Hence, Equity = $1,000

Step 5: Free Margin

From Equity and Used Margin, we can calculate the Free Margin as well. It is the simple difference between the two.

Free Margin = Equity – Used Margin

= $1,000 – $263

Thus, the Free Margin turns out to be $737.

So, this is the amount Tom has left to take new positions.

Step 6: Margin Level

Taking another step forward, we can calculate the Margin Level as,

Margin Level = (Equity / Used Margin) x 100%

= ($1,000 / $263) x 100% = 380%

Hence, the Margin Level is 380%. This is an important term for brokers as they use it to determine Tom’s eligibility to take new positions. Because both the Margin Call Level and Stop Out Level fixed by the brokers will be considering the Margin Level of Tom’s Margin Account.

The values that will be changed after the price changes are Notional value, Used Margin, Floating P/L, Equity, Free Margin & Margin Level.

Now, let’s say the price of the GBP/USD dropped to 1.1000. Let us calculate the changes in the values.

Notional value

Notional value = 10,000 pounds x $1.1000

Notional value = $11,000

Used Margin

Used Margin = Notional value x Margin Requirement

= $11,000 x 0.02 = $220.

Floating P/L

(Entry Price = 1.1800)

Assuming the pip value to be $1, the Floating P/L for a movement of 800 pips will be,

Floating (Unrealized) P/L = (Current price – Entry price) x pip value

= (1.1000 – 1.1800) x 10,000 x $1

= -0.08 x 10,000 x $1

From the above calculation, the Floating P/L will be = (– $800)

Equity

Similarly, Equity will change to

Equity = Balance + Floating P/L

= $1,000 + (-$800)

Hence, the Equity will be $200.

Free Margin

Free Margin = Equity – Used Margin

= $200 – $220 = (–$20)

Margin Level

Margin Level = (Equity / Used Margin) x 100%

= ($200 / $220) x 100%

Hence, we obtain the Margin Level to be 90%.

Now, if you recall the previous two lessons, at this point, Margin Call will be initiated by the broker. And a further fall could lead to Stop Out as well.

In case if the Margin Call Level is the same as the Stop Out Level, then Tom’s Used Margin will be released, and the Floating Loss will be realized. Also, Tom’s Balance will be updated accordingly. We hope it all makes sense now. Check your learning by taking the quiz below.

[wp_quiz id=”51961″]
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30. What Is Margin Level and How Is It Calculated?

Introduction
The margin concepts such as Used margin and Equity have proved to be essential to understand other margin terms. In this lesson, the concept of Margin level too revolves

Introduction
The margin concepts such as Used margin and Equity have proved to be essential to understand other margin terms. In this lesson, the concept of Margin level too revolves

Introduction

The margin concepts such as Used margin and Equity have proved to be essential to understand other margin terms. In this lesson, the concept of Margin level too revolves around the terms Used margin and Equity. Without further discussion, let’s get right into the understanding of the Margin level.

Margin Level

Margi level is the percentage ratio of Equity and Used margin. It is a term whose value is expressed in percentage. Also, the meaning of it is closely related to the Free margin.

The margin level determines if the trader can take new positions or not. It is a comparative factor as it is compared with a level set by the brokers. For easy comprehension, note that higher the margin level, higher is the possibility for the trader to take new positions and vice versa. Knowing the margin level is vital because this value has a relation with a Margin call and Stop out level as well.

Calculating Margin Level

The margin level is the ratio of Equity and Used margin expressed in terms of percentage.

Margin level = (Equity / Used Margin) x 100%

Understanding Margin Level

Similar to the Free margin, the Margin level will have no value when there are no positions open. This is simply because there is no margin used. However, when positions are open, the margin level has a non-zero value, which is dependent on the used margin and equity.

As mentioned earlier, the margin level determines if a trader is eligible to take new positions. And this is determined by the level set by the brokers. If the margin level falls below the level set by the brokers, the trader becomes ineligible to take a new position. Usually, the limit set by the brokers is 100%.

Example

Let’s say a trader has deposited $1,000 to their account and has gone long 10,000 units on USD/CAD. Below are the parameters that are to be calculated to determine the margin level:

  • Required margin
  • Used margin
  • Equity
Required Margin

If the margin requirement for this trade is 2%, the required margin will be,

Required margin = Notional value x Margin requirement = $10,000 x 2% = $200

Used Margin

Since there is only one position running, the value of the used margin will be equal to the value of the required margin, i.e., $200

Equity

Assuming the trade is running in a profit of $50, the equity is calculated as follows:

Equity = Account balance + Floating P/L = $1,000 + $50 = $1,050

Now that all the parameters are known, let’s go ahead and calculate the Margin level.

Margin Level

Margin level = (Equity / Used Margin) x 100% = ($1,050 / $200) x 100% = 525%

Now, since the value of the margin level is above 100%, the trader is still eligible to take new positions. This brings us to the end of this lesson on the Margin level. Don’t forget to take the below quiz.

[wp_quiz id=”50755″]
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28. What Should You Know About Used Margin and Equity

Introduction
In the previous lesson, three terms related to margin was discussed. There is another term called used margin, which comes under the same roof of the margin requirement and

Introduction
In the previous lesson, three terms related to margin was discussed. There is another term called used margin, which comes under the same roof of the margin requirement and

Introduction

In the previous lesson, three terms related to margin was discussed. There is another term called used margin, which comes under the same roof of the margin requirement and required margin. And in the lesson, this term shall be discussed in detail. Apart from that, this lesson shall touch base on the concept of Equity in margin trading.

Before diving directly into the topic, let’s first brush up the previously discussed terms as they form the base for this lesson. To Start off with the Required Margin, it is basically the units of currency that is needed to open a position. Note that this is not the actual amount of the position size but the amount after applying the Margin Requirement to the required margin.

Used Margin

The Used margin is the term that is very similar to the required margin. In fact, the used margin is the required margin. However, there is a thin line difference between the two.

The Used margin is the amount that is blocked by the broker when positions are open on a trader’s account. This definition might seem the same as that of the required margin. The difference is that the required margin talks about one single trade, while the used margin considers the sum of the required margin of all the trades. This is the amount that is ‘used’ by the broker when the trade is open and cannot be utilized for taking new positions. However, once the positions are closed, this used margin is unblocked and returned to the account balance.

Example

Let’s say a trader has $1,000 in his account and wishes to open trades on EUR/USD and USD/CHF.

Let’s assume he is willing to go short 10,000 units on USD/CHF and long 1,000 units on EUR/USD. Let’s keep the margin requirement for USD/CHF and EUR/USD to 2%, respectively. Before going into the calculation of the used margin, the required margin is calculated as follows:

USD/CHF

Required margin = Notional Value x Margin Requirement = $10,000 x 0.02 = $200

EUR/USD

Required margin = Notional Value x Margin requirement = $1,000 x 0.02 = $20

Therefore, when positions on both trades are opened, the used margin turns out to be $220*.

*Used margin = $200 + $20 = $220

Equity

Equity is a variable term that represents the current value of the account balance. Equity constantly changes when traders have their positions running. This proves to be an important term because it determines how many more positions can be taken on this account.

Calculation of Equity

The calculation of Equity is simple. It is the algebraic sum of the account balance and the unrealized P/L. When there are no positions open, the Equity will be the same as the account balance as the unrealized P/L is 0. And when there are any running positions, the Equity will be determined by both account balance and unrealized P/L.

Equity = Account Balance + Floating P/L

From this, it can be inferred that, when trades are running in the positive, the Equity rises, and when they’re in the negative, the Equity drops.

Thus, this completes the lesson on Used Margin and Equity. In the next lesson, some advanced term on margin shall be introduced. Don’t forget to take the below quiz before you move on.

[wp_quiz id=”50341″]
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Forex Course

27. Understanding Margin Amount, Margin Requirement, and Required Margin

Introduction
In the previous two lessons, the basic terms in a margin account were discussed. And this lesson shall talk about the concept of Margin in detail. Precisely, this chapter

Introduction
In the previous two lessons, the basic terms in a margin account were discussed. And this lesson shall talk about the concept of Margin in detail. Precisely, this chapter

Introduction

In the previous two lessons, the basic terms in a margin account were discussed. And this lesson shall talk about the concept of Margin in detail. Precisely, this chapter of the course will deal with Margin, Margin Requirement, and Required Margin, as these three terms are very crucial when it comes to handling a margin account.

Margin, Margin Requirement, and Required Margin are closely related to each other.    Margin, the used term in margin trading, is the amount one needs to possess to open a position. And Margin Requirement and Required Margin are terms which mean the same but differ in notation. Now, let’s dive right into the topic and understand each one of the terms in detail.

Margin Amount

It is the amount that is used up or blocked by the broker to open and maintain a position in the forex. An important point to be noted here is that capital blocked is usually not the same as the lot size traded. Hence, the Margin Amount can be related to deposit or collateral that is payable to be the broker. However, this amount differs based on the number of lots traded.

The margin amount is blocked from the account balance when a trade is opened and is freed to the account balance when the trade is closed.

Margin Requirement

Margin Requirement describes what percentage of the position size is required to open a position. For example, if the Margin Requirement for a trade is 3%, then 3% of the position size is to be produced by the trader to open the position. So, when brokers mention that Margin in terms of percentage, then they are referring to Margin Requirement.

Required Margin

Required Margin is simply the Margin Requirement expressed in terms of units of currency. For example, if the margin requirement is 1% to take a position worth $10,000, then the Required Margin for the same will be $100.

Calculation of Required Margin

Since Required Margin is closely related to the Margin Requirement, the Required Margin is the product of Margin Requirement and the Notional Value.

Required Margin = Margin Requirement x Notional Value

Summary

Let’s sum up all the terms by taking an example. Let’s say a trader has $1,000 in his trading account. This amount can be read as a balance, as well. Let’s say he wishes to go long 10,000 units on EURUSD. Also, let’s assume that 2% of the position size value is required to open a trade.

The Notional value, Margin Requirement, Required Margin can be calculated as follows:

Assuming an account dominated in the USD, the Notional value turns out to be $10,000. Similarly, the Margin Requirement will be 2%, and the Required Margin will be $200*.

*(Required Margin = $10,000 x 2%)

When the trade is placed, $200 is blocked by the broker as “margin.” And once the position is closed, the complete margin amount (deposit) will be added back to your account balance, given that the trader did not make a loss.

This brings us to the end of this lesson. Let’s see if you can get all the below questions right!

[wp_quiz id=”49837″]