Margin is a part of a commodity traders life. In simple terms, margin means borrowing money from the broker to take a position in the derivatives market. Commodity futures are highly leveraged instruments, where traders can enter the market by paying only a fraction of total trade volume. For example, gold futures require a margin of 4 percent, which means one can trade up to a volume of Rs 1 crore by paying only a margin on Rs 4 lakhs.