In the words of Archimedes, “Give me a lever and a place to stand and I will move the earth.” From its point of reference, leverage was the power gained through the mechanical advantage of using a lever.
In terms of futures trading, leverage refers to the ability to control a large value contract with a much smaller investment using borrowed capital. This increases a trader’s buying power and allows traders to control large positions with minimal risk capital.
Trade US Stock Indices
With micro futures, you can gain exposure to stock index markets with even less financial commitment. As highly leveraged investments, Micro E-minis offer the opportunity to control a large contract value with lower capital. Access the following highly liquid stock markets on contracts 1/10th the size of traditional E-minis:
- S&P 500 Index: Micro E-mini S&P 500 Futures (MONTH)
- Dow Jones Industrial Average: Micro E-mini Dow Futures (MYM)
- Nasdaq-100 Index: Micro E-mini Nasdaq Futures (MNQ)
- Russell 2000 Index: Micro E-mini Russell Futures (M 2K)
Thin margins with Micro E-minis
Leverage serves as the backbone of futures markets and all participants rely on borrowed capital to potentially increase the return on their investments while risking the minimum amount of money. This minimum initial investment is called initial margin .
Compared to other financial instruments that use margin, futures contracts require much less initial capital and offer the highest leverage for margin. This allows traders to control contracts that are much more valuable than their initial investment.
At 1/10th the size of traditional E-mini contracts, micro E-minis offer much lower margins than their larger counterparts.
Why trade Micro E-minis with NinjaTrader?
NinjaTrader is the premier destination for futures trading, with daily trading margins of $50 on Micro E-mini futures and offering:
- Clear up savings with big discount commissions
- Low Minimum – Open your NinjaTrader account with just $400
- Free platform – Includes all key features needed for live trading
- Thousands of apps and extensions to customize your platform
Note: Leverage can lead to losses in excess of initial margin, and traders should take appropriate steps to minimize risk when trading in unpredictable markets.
Find out why traders choose Micro E-mini futures:
NinjaTrader supports over 500,000 traders with a powerful, easy-to-use trading platform and world-class support. NinjaTrader is always free to use for advanced charting, strategy backtesting, and trading simulation.
Download NinjaTrader’s award-winning trading platform and get started with a free trading demo today!