When holding positions overnight, traders may incur or earn swap fees. These overnight interest rates vary by instrument and direction of trade. Here's how to check these rates in your trading platforms:
Trading costs also include other components such as commission fees and account-specific charges, which are important to consider for effective trading cost management.
SWAP fees are essentially based on the interest rate differential between the two currencies or assets involved in the trade. They can result in positive (credited) or negative (debited) fees depending on the direction of your trade and the instrument's specifications.
For example, the swap rates for the GBPJPY pair per 1 standard lot are: Long (Buy): +11.8 points, Short (Sell): -25.86 points.
In MT4 Platform:
Log in to your MT4 account
Locate the "Market Watch" panel (usually on the left side of your screen)
Right-click on the instrument you want to check
Select "Specifications" from the dropdown menu
A new window will appear showing the contract specifications
Scroll down to find the "Swap Long" and "Swap Short" values
"Swap Long" shows the overnight interest rate for buy positions
"Swap Short" shows the overnight interest rate for sell positions
In MT5 Platform:
Log in to your MT5 account
Find the "Market Watch" window
Right-click on your desired instrument
Choose "Specification" from the context menu
In the specifications window, locate the "Swap Long" and "Swap Short" fields
These values represent the overnight interest rates for long and short positions respectively
Understanding Swap Values:
Positive values indicate you will receive interest
Negative values indicate you will pay interest
Swaps are typically charged at midnight platform time
On Wednesdays, triple swap charges often apply to account for the weekend SWAPs are applied at 00:00 platform time daily. The platform's time zone adjustment is GMT+3 during summer and GMT+2 during winter. Additionally, triple SWAP charges occur during the Wednesday to Thursday rollover to account for the weekend. SWAP charges for long positions (buy) are often higher, whereas short positions (sell) can have lower or even positive SWAP values. These differences are tied to interest rate differentials and should be reviewed within platform specifications.
Remember that swap rates may change based on market conditions and your broker's policies. It's important to check these values before holding positions overnight, especially for longer-term trades.
Swap rates are updated daily and are influenced by market conditions, making it essential to check them regularly.
To better manage your SWAP costs, consider timing your positions to minimize triple SWAP charges or reviewing SWAP rates before entering a trade. Exploring instruments with more favorable SWAP conditions can also help optimize trading costs.
Account-Specific Fee Structures
FXTRADING.com applies specific fee structures based on account types. For instance, the Premium/Selection account type has a commission fee of $7 per lot traded. This is a fixed fee structure for this account type.
For more detailed information about how swaps are calculated or applied to your account, please contact our Live Chat support team through your Client Portal.