Trade benchmarks like the S&P 500, the FTSE 100 and the DAX on FighterPulse when earnings season, rate expectations or a shift in risk appetite starts moving an entire market.
Live index prices show which regions are leading and which are lagging as Asian trading hands over to Europe and the US.
Most benchmarks are weighted by company size, so a handful of large constituents can decide which way an index moves on the day.
Take a view on the US, UK or German economy with a single trade, without choosing between hundreds of individual companies.
Technology makes up a large share of the S&P 500, so a sell-off in chipmakers can pull the index lower while other sectors are rising.
When risk appetite turns, indices in different regions often react together, and the market overview shows how far the move has spread.
There's no charge to open an account and the whole process runs online, with every index on the platform ready once your balance is funded.
What traders following the S&P 500, the DAX and the FTSE 100 say about trading entire markets.
“I’d rather trade the index than guess which single stock is going to move. Being able to see the big names pulling it around is a nice bonus.”
Index trader, United Kingdom
“Mostly the S&P around US data days. The calendar saves me checking a separate site every week.”
Part-time trader, Canada
“Being in Zurich I watch the European open closely. Nice to see the DAX and the FTSE next to each other first thing.”
Retail trader, Switzerland
“Took about a week to stop opening five tabs out of habit, now it’s just this.”
Multi-market trader, Ireland
“Simple and fast. Does what I need for index trading.”
Index trader, Denmark
What indices are, why some companies count for more than others and how to start trading them with FighterPulse.
Indices trading means taking a position on a stock market benchmark, such as the S&P 500 or the DAX, which tracks the combined performance of a group of large companies. A single trade gives you exposure to the direction of a whole market or sector.
Most major indices are weighted by company size, so the biggest companies have the largest influence on the price. The S&P 500, for example, covers around 80% of available US market value, and a sharp move in a handful of its largest members can lift or drag the index.
Index prices move with the combined fortunes of the companies inside them. Earnings seasons, interest-rate expectations, inflation and jobs data, and shifts in investor risk appetite can all move a benchmark, and news hitting a heavyweight sector like technology or banking can have an outsized effect.
FighterPulse offers major stock market benchmarks from the US, Europe and Asia. You’ll find every available index, along with its trading hours, on the Trading Conditions page, which makes it easy to check the markets you follow before opening an account.
Yes. Indices and stocks sit in the same FighterPulse account alongside forex, crypto, commodities and metals. That makes it easy to compare a benchmark with the companies driving it and then trade either one, all without moving between platforms or funding a second account.
