...In 3 easy steps.

1. Log on for Vendetta the first time.
2. Buy a bus.
3. Undock and hit the "o" key.

Your cargo HUD element window will now be chopped off with only the top left portion showing. It'll still function, but you won't see the nifty frame moving back and forth. Your cargo icons will instead float around.

And one thing I'd like to ask is to make this an optional feature. People who don't trade a lot (which is probably the majority of players) will have to hit "o" everytime they buy a new ship, and it can get annoying after a while. Or maybe it can be placed further down in the HUD and be permanent, as a small window below where the weapon inventory window is now. That way it would be out of the way and you'll have improved visibility. The area showing your money can also use a bit of expansion, since getting 10 million credits is quite easy with the s18-s14 trade route.

I just don't understand why it's expanded by default now.
Perhaps that should be a variable.

It was expanded by default because so many people asked for it to be so while complaining about forgetting to load cargo.

Also for newbies so they really know they picked up some cargo that's floating in space.
Pressing o is not that hard to turn it off for experienced players. ;)