GLOSSARY · METATRADER
What is Market Watch?
Market Watch is the MetaTrader panel listing available instruments with live bid and ask prices, and the place where each symbol's full contract specification is found.
What it means
By default it shows only a subset of what the broker offers. Right-clicking and choosing "Show All" reveals the complete list, which is frequently necessary because gold is often hidden behind a metals or CFD grouping rather than sitting with the FX pairs.
Why it matters
The specification dialog for each symbol is the authoritative source for contract size, minimum volume, stop level, swap rates and trading hours. These vary by broker and account type, and every one of them can break an automated system that assumed a different value.
What this changes in practice
A symbol also has to be visible in Market Watch for an EA to reference it reliably. This is a common cause of a bot working on one terminal and not another with apparently identical settings.
Related terms
- Symbol suffixA symbol suffix is the broker-specific text appended to an instrument name — XAUUSDm, XAUUSD.raw…
- Contract sizeContract size is how many units of the underlying instrument one standard lot represents, and it…
- Stop levelThe stop level is the minimum distance from the current price at which a broker will accept a st…
Educational information only, not financial advice. Trading leveraged products carries substantial risk of loss. Last updated 2026-08-11.