I'm trying to find out where I can access the most detailed information about margin use on my account. Looking at my statement under cash detail I see the category "Broker interest paid and received" - does this refer specifically and only to margin interest (or can it include other fees)? And where on my statement can I find precise information about the interest rate I'm being charged? Is there some way using the reports function in account management I can actually get a full history of monthly margin payments and interest rate fluctuations if any? Thank you for your help.
Since you failed to mention which broker you are using, the best suggestion is to call your broker on the telephone and ask them. We're not going to try and guess which of the 10,00,000000750p69 brokers that are out there you are using.
My mistake. Thought I was posting this in the Interactive Brokers forum, but now realize I did not. If an admin could move the thread, I'd appreciate it!
Meanwhile you clarified that your questions relate to your account at IB. The margin requirements are not listed on the monthly statement. You can see your current margin requirement in TWS. The interest rate is not listed on the monthly statement. The debit interest (or credit interest) is calculated on a daily basis. The monthly statement only shows the cumulative amount of the entire month. The interest rate, and the threshold for each tier, is available on IB's website. You could check here to see what reports can be run from the Account Management environment: https://www.interactivebrokers.com/en/software/reportguide/reportguide/reportreference.htm
Thanks for explaining in detail. I do have one question if you could please help me out with that. So does the margin percentage or amount if we call it that, varies among brokers or is it the same throughout?
It depends a bit on the type of instrument. For stocks is it mostly the same for all brokers (usually 50% for non-leveraged stocks and ETFs, and 25% intraday). For other instruments, such as futures, are the margin requirements set by the broker. The exchange has a margin requirement to the broker. The broker adds something on top and thus arrives at the margin requirement to you, the customer. How much the broker adds depends on their risk analysis. This margin is not expressed as a percentage, but as a value per contract expressed in the contract's currency. The broker has the liberty to change the margin requirement at any moment, subject to their risk analysis.
It varies depending on the margin percentage by the broker. There are brokers that would require high margins to hold the positions especially during the weekends. They say it’s because of the liquidity risk. So say if the regular margin is 1%, it would increase to 2% on the weekends.
My broker just closed my account the first time I lost a substantial amount. Few bad moves and I stumbled. What do I do now?