What happens when you press Buy

The chart on your screen shows prices that have already happened. When you press Buy, your platform sends an instruction to your broker. That instruction says which instrument, how many lots, and at what price you are willing to trade. It does not trade on the chart itself.

The instruction travels over the internet to the broker's server. The broker then passes it to the market or matches it against other clients' orders. This whole step is called order routing. It takes a fraction of a second, but it is not instant.

Your platform may show a confirmation that the order was sent. That confirmation is not the same as a filled order. It only means the broker received your instruction. The next step is where the actual trade happens.

A fill is the moment your order becomes a real trade. The price you get is called the fill price. It can be different from the price you saw when you pressed Buy, because prices move while your order travels.

For a market order, you accept whatever price is available when the order reaches the broker. That price might be higher or lower than the one on your chart. This difference is called slippage. It is normal in fast markets.

The broker also quotes two prices: the bid and the ask. You buy at the ask and sell at the bid. The gap between them is the spread. The spread is a cost that attaches to this step, the fill.

Once filled, your trade becomes an open position. It stays open until you close it. While it is open, the price moves and your profit or loss changes in real time. The chart shows this as a floating number.

An open position can last minutes, days, or longer. If you hold it overnight, the broker may charge or pay a swap. Swap is based on the interest rate difference between the two currencies. It varies between brokers and can change daily.

You close the position by sending an opposite order. If you bought, you sell the same amount. The closing fill price determines your final result before costs. All costs from the earlier steps are now combined.

The chart shows a price line and a horizontal line for your entry. It does not show the spread, the commission or the swap. Those sit outside the picture, attached to the position while it stays open. The spread is built into the price you receive, so the position starts slightly behind the entry line you drew. Commission, if the broker charges it, is taken from the account balance separately. Swap is added or subtracted once per day the position is held, and it can be positive or negative. Whether each of these applies, and how large each one is, varies between brokers.

On the chart, the distance from your entry line to the current price is the gross move. The net result is that distance in pips, multiplied by the pip value, minus the spread and any commission, plus or minus any swap. A position can show a gross gain on the chart and still leave less in the account once those charges are counted. The chart cannot show this, because the charges are not prices. You find them in the fee schedule and in the account statement after the position closes.

Before pressing Buy, note the four steps and the charge that belongs to each. Then check the fee schedule for the spread on EUR/USD, the commission per lot, and the swap rate for holding overnight. If any of those figures is missing or unclear, ask the broker before the position is open, not after. The SEC Philippines registers brokers that offer these products to residents, and you can check a firm's registration there. Registration is not a judgement on cost or suitability, so the fee schedule still needs reading.