Trading Foundations

A chart label is only the beginning. An index measures a basket of securities; it is not itself an account you can buy. A share is an ownership interest in a company. A futures contract is a standardized exchange-traded agreement with its own multiplier, expiry and settlement rules. A CFD is a contract with a provider that settles a price difference; it does not give you ownership of the underlying asset.

The same market name can appear on several products with different trading hours, prices, costs and minimum sizes. A platform is the software you use, a broker handles the account and execution, and a prop-firm program has its own evaluation or funded-account terms. Those are different roles. A simulated evaluation is not the same thing as a live brokerage account.

Your instrument card

• Full product name, symbol and provider or exchange.
• Contract size, smallest price increment and value per increment.
• Trading hours, expiry if applicable, and account currency.
• Spread, commission, financing or other charges.
• Account eligibility, execution rules and loss limits.

Use these lessons for education and simulated practice. None of the examples is a live trade instruction or a promise of returns. Leveraged trading can produce losses beyond the amount you expect.

Worked example

Two charts both refer to the S&P 500. One is an exchange futures contract; the other is a provider’s CFD. A ten-point move does not establish equal profit or equal risk. You still need each product’s size, point value, currency and costs.

Try it in replay

Choose one product in a demo account. Complete the instrument card using its official specifications. Leave unknown fields marked unknown instead of filling them from a similar product.

Check your reasoning

If you cannot explain what one unit represents and how a price move becomes money, the card is unfinished. A familiar symbol and a working order button are not enough.