A very common question from new traders is: "Why does my trade instantly show a small loss the second I open it?" This happens because of the spread, which is the small gap between the buying price and the selling price of an asset in the global market.
Two Prices to Know
Every asset has two prices:
The Ask Price (Buy): the price you pay to buy.
The Bid Price (Sell): the price you get if you sell.
The spread is the difference between these two prices. Buying and selling instantly will show a small loss because you buy at the higher price and can only sell at the lower price.
Charts and Prices
Most charts show the Bid price (Sell).
When you buy, your trade closes on the Bid price.
However, when you sell, your trade closes on the Ask price.
Note: This is why a sell trade can hit your Stop Loss even if the visible chart line doesn’t seem to touch it.
Why do Spreads Change?
Spreads are not fixed. During busy market times, such as major news events, our liquidity providers may widen the spreads to manage risk. Your platform will show this wider gap in real time.
If you need help configuring your charts to show both the Bid and Ask lines, please contact support@traderise.com.