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| Account Limit | |
| The total amount of deposit required from a client at any one time based on the size of the trade. | |
| After hours deal | |
| Aka as after hour trading. The stock exchange closes at 4.30pm but deals are often done after this time and the transaction dated the following day. Some spread betting providers will make a market on different products even after the underlying exchange has closed or before it is open - for instance even though the LSE closes at 4.30pm it might still be possible to trade BP up till about 9.00pm | |
| Allotment letter | |
| A document showing that you have been allotted a certain number of newly issued shares. | |
| Alpha | |
| Derogatory term used mostly by IG traders to denote clients who only spreadbet to take advantage of arbitrage situations. | |
| AIM | |
| the Alternative Investment Market, a UK trading market used by smaller companies looking to raise finance. AIM listed shares avoid full compliance with LSE rules. | |
| Annual general meeting (AGM) | |
| Every company must have an AGM each year, to allow shareholders to vote on the accounts, directors and dividends and question the board on the company's affairs. | |
| Annual Report | |
| The yearly independently audited report to shareholders which must be produced by all publicly quoted companies. | |
| Arbitrage | |
| the attempt to profit by exploiting the price difference for the same financial instrument from one spread betting company to that of another. So basically here bettors take advantage of quotes in the same market where there is a divergence of opinion between spread betting providers so that by buying with one firm and selling with another they can guarantee themselves a profit no matter what the final outcome of an event. | |
| Articles of Association | |
| A document setting out the objects and administration of the company. | |
| Ask | |
| also called 'offer'. Indicates a willingness to sell a future or share at given price. Opposite to Bid. | |
| At best | |
| An order to a stockbroker to get the best possible price he can obtain for your benefit as opposed to limiting your order to a fixed price. | |
| Auction | |
| a system in which buyers and sellers enter competitive bids and offers simultaneously. | |
| Auto Sales | |
|
Car sales are tremendously important to the US economy but their volatility can make them an unreliable indicator. New models introduced at the end of summer and in early spring tend to have a disproportionate influence on sales figures. That said, strong figures are a good sign that consumer demand is picking up. They can be seen as indicating higher future production if demand is sustained over three or four months. The size of the item in question and the timeliness of the release allow auto sales to be a useful leading indicator of retail sales and personal consumption expenditures data. Release Date: Around the 13th of each month Release Time: 13:30 GMT |
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| At the money | |
| where the strike price of an option is equal to the current market level. For example FTSE 100 index is trading at 6,100 in the cash, then the 6100 series of option will be at the money. |