Rollover interest is posted at a different moment from the spread widening
Posted: Fri Oct 30, 2026 11:25 am
Rollover interest is posted at a different moment from the spread widening
Two separate things happen around 17:00 New York time. The spread widens as liquidity thins. And interest is credited or debited on open positions. The two are linked in popular imagination, but the timing is not identical.
The swap posts at the exact rollover time set by the broker, usually 17:00 New York or 00:00 server time depending on convention. The spread widening begins earlier and ends later. A position closed at 16:59 pays no swap but may have suffered the wide spread on exit. A position closed at 17:01 pays the swap and also pays a wide spread.
For anyone who closes trades around that time, the cost combines both. And the platform will only show the swap in the trade history, which makes the spread part invisible.
The simplest fix is mechanical. Set a hard stop-trading time well before the widening starts, close everything, and treat the window as closed.
Some brokers allow positions to be held through rollover without the spread penalty by using different servers. That sort of detail is worth finding out.
Has the cost around rollover ever been added up separately from the rest of the trading day?
Two separate things happen around 17:00 New York time. The spread widens as liquidity thins. And interest is credited or debited on open positions. The two are linked in popular imagination, but the timing is not identical.
The swap posts at the exact rollover time set by the broker, usually 17:00 New York or 00:00 server time depending on convention. The spread widening begins earlier and ends later. A position closed at 16:59 pays no swap but may have suffered the wide spread on exit. A position closed at 17:01 pays the swap and also pays a wide spread.
For anyone who closes trades around that time, the cost combines both. And the platform will only show the swap in the trade history, which makes the spread part invisible.
The simplest fix is mechanical. Set a hard stop-trading time well before the widening starts, close everything, and treat the window as closed.
Some brokers allow positions to be held through rollover without the spread penalty by using different servers. That sort of detail is worth finding out.
Has the cost around rollover ever been added up separately from the rest of the trading day?