Index trading

There's no cost when opening a live spread betting or CFD trading account. You can also view prices and use tools such as charts, Reuters news or Morningstar quantitative equity reports, free of charge. However, you will need to deposit funds in your account to place a trade. Learn about the costs involved in spread betting and CFD trading

There are a number of costs to consider when spread betting and CFD trading, including spread costs, holding costs (for trades held overnight which is essentially a fee for the funds you borrow to cover the leveraged portion of the trade), rollover costs for expired forward trades, and guaranteed stop-loss order charges (if you use this risk-management tool).

CMC Markets Germany GmbH is a company authorised and regulated by the German Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin) under registration number 154814. CMC Markets meets the requirements of Section 84 of the German Securities Trading Act (WpHG) with regard to customer funds. It keeps retail client funds separate from its own funds in segregated bank accounts.

CMC Markets Germany GmbH is a company authorised and regulated by the Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin). CMC Markets meets the requirements of Section 84 of the German Securities Trading Act (WpHG) with regard to customer funds. It keeps retail client funds separate from its own funds in segregated bank accounts. In the unlikely event that CMC Markets Germany GmbH is unable to meet its financial obligations, the EdW would cover up to 90% of the receivables from transactions (maximum EUR 20,000) provided certain criteria are met.

Our income comes primarily from our spreads and commissions, while other charges - such as overnight holding costs - make a small contribution to our total revenue.

Indices are a measure of a section of shares in the stock market, created by combining the value of several stocks to create one aggregate value. Major financial indices include the Dow Jones Industrial Average, FTSE 100, CAC 40, and Dax 30. The Dow Jones index, for example, represents 30 large publicly-listed companies traded on the New York Stock Exchange. Learn more about indices

You can start trading on indices by opening a live account. If you would like to practise your index trading strategy, open a demo account to trade with virtual funds.

One of the advantages of spread betting and CFD trading is that you only need to deposit a percentage of the full value of your position to open a trade, known as trading on leverage. Remember, trading on leverage can also amplify losses, so it’s important to manage your risk.

Spread betting allows you to trade tax-free on a wide range of financial markets 24 hours a day, from Sunday nights through to Friday nights. Trade on your phone, tablet, PC or Mac on a wide range of instruments using leverage. Tax treatment depends on individual circumstances and can change or may differ in a jurisdiction other than the UK.

When you spread bet or trade CFDs on indices on our platform, you don’t buy or sell the underlying index. Instead, you’re taking a position on whether you think the index will go up or down.

With spread betting, you buy or sell an amount per point movement for the index instrument you’re trading, such as £5 per point. This is known as your stake.

With CFD trading, you buy or sell a number of units for a particular instrument. For every point or unit that the price moves in your favour, you gain multiples of your stake, and vice versa.

While you can trade on leverage, your profits and losses are based on the full value of the trade. As a retail client, you will never lose more than the amount in your account.