Spot definition

Spot has a particular significance in relation to IG's platform. Here, we define spot in general investing and explain what it means to you when trading with IG Bank.

In trading, spot refers to the price of an asset for immediate delivery, or the value of an asset at any exact given time. It differs from an asset’s futures price, which is the price for delivery at some date in the future, or its expected price.

Any asset that can be traded as a future can be quoted as a spot price. It is most commonly used in commodities, where markets like Spot Gold signify a trade where delivery of the gold would be immediate.

Forex trades can also use spot prices, as deliveries of currency usually take place 48 hours after a trade has executed.

With IG Bank

You can enjoy the benefits of spot markets on all of our key 47 commodity assets. Take a short-term view without many of the problems of traditional futures, as our prices are derived from an algorithm measuring the forward curve of each commodity.

Visit our commodities section

Find out more about commodities trading with IG Bank.

We also quote spot prices for FX trades.

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Spot definition

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