Margin is the portion of your equity set aside (or "frozen") to open and maintain a trade. It is not a fee or a cost—it acts as a temporary deposit that is returned to your account once the position is closed.
Understanding your margin requirement helps you evaluate trading risk and calculate how much free capital you have available to open additional positions.
Important Rule: Hedged Metal Positions (MT5)
For precious metal products on MT5 (ECN, Cent, and STP accounts), the Hedged Margin ratio is adjusted as follows:
Fully Hedged: Margin requirement drops to 0% (no margin required).
Partially Hedged: Margin is calculated based only on the net position (the difference between buy and sell volumes).