Capital.com reported $1.13 trillion in client trading volumes for the second quarter of 2026, with volume traded in Gold markets accounting for 42.4 per cent of total platform volume, the highest share of any instrument on the platform. 

The global online derivatives trading platform said the figure was consistent with the higher proportion of platform activity directed towards commodity markets across the quarter. 

Total trades executed between April and June stood at 34.9 million, a decrease of 23.2 per cent compared with 45.4 million in the first quarter of 2026. 

However, the average trade size increased by 16 per cent to $32,418, compared with $27,950 in the previous quarter, indicating that while the number of trades was lower, clients were placing larger individual positions. 

According to Capital.com, the second quarter was characterised by three distinct phases of market activity. 

April was the most active month for commodity markets, as the closure of the Strait of Hormuz disrupted activity in energy and precious metals. 

In May, however, easing Middle East tensions and a broad equity rally shifted activity towards technology and index markets. Volumes stood at $369.4 billion, the lowest of the three months. 

June then saw Gold market prices pull back towards $4,000 per ounce as expectations of future US interest rate hikes rose, while increased equity market activity drove a greater share of platform volume. 

Across the instrument mix, the US Tech 100 was the second most actively traded instrument, accounting for 25.9 per cent of Q2 platform volume, with trading activity elevated in June as equity markets saw increased price movement. 

WTI Crude Oil accounted for 7 per cent of Q2 volume, the Dow Jones 30 for 4.8 per cent and the DAX 40 for 4 per cent. 

Meanwhile, Silver saw increased trading activity across the quarter, with its share of platform volume rising from April to June as precious metals markets remained active. 

Commenting on how market conditions shaped client trading activity, Capital.com senior market analyst Kyle Rodda said that “Q2 2026 presented retail traders with a succession of distinct market conditions, with the dominant theme shifting throughout the quarter”. 

He added that “the Strait of Hormuz disruption in April concentrated activity in energy and Gold markets”, noting that the data showed this clearly, as “volume traded in Gold markets reached 42.4 per cent of total platform volume for the quarter”. 

Rodda said that as the situation eased in May, “we saw activity shift toward equity indices, with the US Tech 100 becoming a proportionally larger share of platform volume following strong US tech earnings”. 

He added that “June continued that rotation, with Gold market prices pulling back and equity market activity increasing”, saying that “what the Q2 data reflects is clients adjusting their market exposure as conditions changed”. 

The Middle East was Capital.com’s largest market by platform activity in the second quarter, accounting for 57.2 per cent of total platform volume. 

Volume traded in Gold markets represented 49.9 per cent of Middle East volume, a higher concentration than the platform-wide average of 42.4 per cent. 

The US Tech 100 accounted for 23.5 per cent of Middle East volume and WTI Crude Oil for 7.3 per cent, reflecting the continued relevance of energy market conditions in the region during the quarter. 

Capital.com Middle East chief executive Tarik Chebib said that “the Middle East accounted for 57.2 per cent of Capital.com’s total Q2 platform volume, with volume traded in Gold markets representing 49.9 per cent of regional activity”. 

According to Chebib, “the concentration of commodity market trading in the Middle East reflects the region’s strong demand for Gold and energy instruments”, while “the platform’s regulatory and operational framework is designed to support responsible market access in the region”. 

He added that the company’s focus was now “deepening how clients in the region use the platform, particularly in building the risk management discipline through wider adoption of stop-loss orders to support better decision-making over time”. 

Europe accounted for 21.7 per cent of Q2 platform volume. 

Among EU markets, the five most active European markets by volume were Germany, accounting for 22.8 per cent of European volume, Italy at 5.5 per cent, the Netherlands at 4.1 per cent, France at 3.4 per cent and Poland at 2.8 per cent. 

The remaining volume was distributed across other European markets. 

Across the region, volume traded in Gold markets represented 35.3 per cent of European volume, while the US Tech 100 accounted for 26.8 per cent and WTI Crude Oil for 9 per cent. 

The DAX 40 accounted for 6.6 per cent of European volume, reflecting home-market index activity. 

UK client activity, meanwhile, was equity-led, with the US Tech 100 the most actively traded instrument in the region at 40 per cent of UK volume, above its platform-wide share of 25.9 per cent. 

Volume traded in Gold markets accounted for 13.8 per cent of UK volume and the DAX 40 for 11.9 per cent. 

Capital.com said the elevated US Tech 100 share was consistent with the increase in equity market volatility observed in June, which drove a greater proportion of platform activity across the quarter. 

The instrument mix in Australia was closely balanced between commodity and equity markets, with volume traded in Gold markets at 24 per cent and the US Tech 100 at 23.2 per cent. 

The Dow Jones 30 accounted for 7.1 per cent of Australian volume and the DAX 40 for 6.1 per cent, while Asia accounted for 5.4 per cent of total Q2 platform volume. 

At the same time, stop-loss adoption increased during the quarter, with 26.6 per cent of positions carrying a stop-loss instruction, up from 22.4 per cent in the first quarter. 

Capital.com said the growth in adoption reflected a broader pattern of retail clients applying structured risk controls, a discipline that the platform actively supports through educational content on stop-loss placement and calibration. 

According to the company, setting a stop-loss removes the need for a real-time decision at the point of maximum market stress, taking emotion out of the exit decision and replacing it with a pre-defined rule. 

However, stop-loss adoption varied significantly by market. 

Among major European markets, Sweden recorded 32 per cent, the Netherlands 31.2 per cent, Germany 29.3 per cent and Italy 29.1 per cent, all above the platform-wide average of 26.6 per cent. 

In the UAE, stop-loss adoption was lower than the platform-wide average, indicating that structured risk management practice in the region remained at an earlier stage of adoption. 

Commenting on European platform activity, Capital.com Europe chief executive Christoforos Soutzis said that “Europe is a mature, diverse market and the Q2 data reflects that”. 

He added that “clients across the region are using the platform across a broad range of instruments and applying more structured approaches to how they manage their positions”. 

According to Soutzis, “growing stop-loss adoption tells us that clients are making deliberate decisions about risk before they enter a trade, not after”, adding that “that is the kind of trading discipline we want to support, and it is what we build the platform to enable”. 

Capital.com cautioned that not all stop-loss orders are guaranteed and that, in fast-moving market conditions, they may not fully limit losses. 

Guaranteed stop-loss orders may also be subject to additional costs. The company added that “trading volumes are influenced by prevailing market conditions and do not indicate future performance.”