Configuration

All KlawTrade settings live in a single YAML file at config/settings.yaml. The init wizard generates this file, but you can edit it directly at any time. Changes take effect on the next restart.

Configuration File

system:
  mode: paper                     # paper | live
  always_on: false                # run outside market hours
  timezone: US/Eastern
  heartbeat_interval_seconds: 30
  max_concurrent_orders: 5
  trading_hours:
    start: "09:30"
    end: "16:00"

broker:
  provider: alpaca
  paper: true

risk:
  max_portfolio_allocation: 0.90    # 90% max total allocation
  max_single_position_pct: 0.10     # 10% max per position
  max_sector_allocation_pct: 0.30   # 30% max per sector
  max_correlated_exposure_pct: 0.40 # 40% max correlated
  max_daily_loss_pct: 0.03          # 3% daily loss limit
  max_weekly_loss_pct: 0.07         # 7% weekly loss limit
  max_drawdown_pct: 0.15            # 15% max drawdown
  max_single_trade_loss_pct: 0.02   # 2% per trade
  max_open_positions: 15
  max_daily_trades: 50
  min_cash_reserve_pct: 0.10        # 10% cash reserve
  circuit_breaker:
    consecutive_losses_halt: 5
    halt_duration_minutes: 60
    vix_threshold: 35.0
  order_guards:
    require_limit_orders: true
    min_volume_threshold: 100000
    max_spread_pct: 0.02

strategy:
  universe:
    watchlist:
      - SPY
      - QQQ
      - AAPL
      - MSFT
      - NVDA
      - GOOGL
      - AMZN
      - META
      - TSLA
      - AMD
    max_universe_size: 25
  signals:
    min_confidence: 0.70
    max_signal_age_seconds: 300

portfolio:
  starting_capital: 100000
  benchmark: SPY

dashboard:
  enabled: true
  port: 8080

logging:
  level: INFO
  format: json
  file: logs/klawtrade.log

Key Options

Option	Default	Description
`system.mode`	paper	Controls whether real orders are placed. Must be `paper` or `live`. Set to live only when you are ready to trade with real money.
`system.always_on`	false	When true, the engine runs outside market hours (useful for simulation mode).
`risk.max_daily_loss_pct`	0.03	If daily losses exceed this threshold (3%), the circuit breaker halts all trading.
`risk.max_single_position_pct`	0.10	Maximum percentage of total equity any single position can use (10%).
`strategy.universe.watchlist`	SPY, QQQ, AAPL...	The list of ticker symbols to scan. Default includes 10 major tickers.
`strategy.signals.min_confidence`	0.70	Minimum confidence score a signal must have to pass the risk gate. Strategies produce scores between 0 and 1.

Environment Variables

Sensitive credentials are stored in a .env file in the project root. This file is automatically loaded at startup and should never be committed to version control.

ALPACA_API_KEY=your_api_key_here
ALPACA_SECRET_KEY=your_secret_key_here
ALPACA_BASE_URL=https://paper-api.alpaca.markets

If Alpaca API keys are not set, KlawTrade automatically falls back to its built-in simulation broker which uses simulated price data. No external API keys are required to get started.