Many beginner and even moderately experienced traders are unaware that the most popular trading terminal, MetaTrader, allows trading not only traditional assets like currency pairs, metals, and stocks but also futures.
Trading futures in the MT4 terminal is almost identical to regular forex trading. Both follow the well-known principles of fundamental and technical analysis, price charts are constructed similarly, and pending orders and technical indicators are used in the same way. Essentially, any forex trader can easily switch to futures trading, provided they understand the market’s specific characteristics.
What is a Future?
First, let’s recall what a future is.
A future is a contract that sets the terms for buying or selling a standard quantity of a specific asset at a predetermined price on a specified future date.
Simply put, by purchasing such a security, the trader commits to buying its full value at the contract’s expiration. If the price rises by the end of this period, the trader profits; if it falls, the trader incurs a loss.
Futures are used for:
- Hedging against random price fluctuations at the time of the actual purchase or sale of the specified commodity;
- Speculative operations.
Since trading is speculation, we focus on the second use. Therefore, most traders do not wait for the futures contract to expire but close their positions when the price moves favorably.
Where to Find Futures in MetaTrader 4
If you decide to trade futures without changing your trading terminal, usually you can open the chart of the desired contract via the “File” – “Open Chart” menu. But what if futures are not displayed there?
In that case, go to the “Symbols” tab in the “View” menu or press Ctrl + U.
Clicking on the “Symbols” tab opens a list of asset categories available for trading, among which you will find futures.
In the example broker, available futures are categorized, making them easier to find. For instance, if you want to trade gold futures, go to the Futures Metal tab and select the contract with the desired expiration date. Suppose it is the February gold future. Click “Show,” and the asset will appear in the “File” – “Open Chart” menu.
Now just click on it to open the February gold futures chart.
What Makes Futures Trading Different
Here is the first peculiarity of futures trading:
- Unlike familiar charts labeled GOLD or XAU/USD, the opened chart will be named something like #GCG7. This is not an error. Each futures contract has its own code. Therefore, before trading futures, it is useful to learn the codes of the contracts you are interested in.
- The second difference from traditional forex trading is trading hours. Forex trades around the clock, while futures trade only during specific sessions.
How to find out the trading hours for a particular future? It’s simple. Go back to the Futures Metals tab, select your February gold future, and click “Properties.”
A window will appear showing all the contract’s details, including margin, tick value, and the actual trading and quotation times.
Summary
It is important to understand that MetaTrader 4 is just software; it does not care what you trade. The key is whether your forex broker offers futures trading services. Otherwise, no matter how many times you open “View” – “Symbols,” you won’t find futures there.
Undoubtedly, futures trading in MetaTrader 4 is very similar to regular currency trading. More experienced traders often use specialized platforms for futures, where the process differs somewhat from MT4, but the essence remains the same.
Statistics show that over half of futures traders earn consistent profits, while only about 5-10% of forex traders are successful. So, whether to try futures trading in MetaTrader 4 or stick exclusively to currency pairs is a question worth considering.
