Name the point
On USTEC, write down the cash value of one index point for the size you intend. If you cannot, you are not ready to choose a lot. The platform specification lists point value per lot in the account currency.
Learn
Five lessons. Then the ticket.
Standard accounts are invited through this sequence before a leverage review. You can read it without an account.
Pay the spread on paper
Multiply typical spread by point value by lots. That number is the cost of a round trip in a calm hour. Add a wider spread for the cash open and see if the idea still pays for itself.
Margin is a deposit, not a price
Required margin is not the most you can lose. In a gap, loss can exceed margin. That is why negative-balance rules, where they apply to retail clients, are described on the regulation page rather than assumed.
Hold or flatten
If the position will see a roll, add the overnight figure for the number of nights, including a triple day if the card says so. A three-night hold can cost more than the spread.
Decide the worst case on purpose
Either accept gap risk with a standard stop, or pay the guaranteed-stop premium if the order is hit. Writing “I will close it” is not an order type.
Worked sketch
USTEC at 20,000. Point value $1 per lot. Typical spread 0.8. Two lots, intraday: spread cost about $1.60. The same two lots held three nights at an indicative long funding of 3.4 points is about $20.40 before the market moves. These figures are illustrations from the public card, not a live quote.