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CONTRACT SPECS

FUTURES/OPTION
EXPIRATIONS



Commodity Trading Software



 
CONTRACT SPECIFICATIONS

 | CONTRACT SPECS | UNDERSTANDING CONTRACT SPECS |


Contract Specifications

Symbol

Future

Exchange

Hours

Months

Contract Size

Point Value

ED

Eurodollar (3 Month)

CME

7:20-2:00

H,M,U,Z

1 mil E

1 pt.= $25.00

FF

Federal Funds

CBOT

7:20-2:00

All Months

$5 mil

1 pt.= $41.67

TB

T-Bills (90 Day)

CME

7:20-2:00

H,M,U,Z

1 mil Bills

1 pt.= $25.00

TU,FV,TY

T-Notes (2 -10Years)

CBOT

7:20-2:00

H,M,U,Z

$200,000 note

1/64= $15.625

US

US T-Bonds

CBOT

7:20-2:00

H,M,U,Z

$100,000 note

1/32= $31.25

AD

Australian Dollar

IMM

7:20-2:00

H,M,U,Z

100,000 AD

1 pt= $10.00

BP

British Pound

IMM

7:20-2:00

H,M,U,Z

62,500 BP

1 pts.= $6.25

CD

Canadian Dollar

IMM

7:20-2:00

H,M,U,Z

100,000 CD

1 pt. = $10.00

EC

Eurodollar

IMM

7:20-2:00

H,M,U,Z

125000

1 pt.= $12.50

JY

Japanese Yen

IMM

7:20-2:00

H,M,U,Z

12.5 mil Yen

1 pt.= $12.50

Mp

Mexican Peso

IMM

7:20-2:00

H,M,U,Z

500,000 MP

1 pt.= $5.00

SF

Swiss Franc

IMM

7:20-2:00

H,M,U,Z

125,000 SF

1 pt.= $12.50

DJ

Dow Jones Ind

CBOT

7:20-3:15

H,M,U,Z

$10 x Index Value

1 pt.= $10.00

ND

NASDAQ 100

CME

8:30-3:15

H,M,U,Z

$100 x Index Value

1 pt.= $5.00

SP

S&P 500

CME

8:30-3:15

H,M,U,Z

$250 x Index

1 pt.= $2.50

DX

US Dollar Index

NYBT

6:00PM-9:00PM

H,M,U,Z

$1000 x Index

1 pt.= $10.00

C

Corn

CBOT

9:30-1:15

H,K,N,U,Z

5,000 bu

1 ct= $50.00

W,KW,MW

Wheat

CBOT/KCBT/MPLS

9:30-1:15

H,K,N,U,Z

5,000 bu

1/4 pt.= $50.00

O

Oats

CBOT

9:30-1:15

H,K,N,U,Z

5,000 bu

1 ct= $50.00

NR

Rough Rice

CBOT

9:30-1:15

F,H,K,N,U

2,000 klbs

1 ct= $20.00

S

Soybean

CBOT

9:30-1:15

F,H,K,N,Q,U,X

5,000 bu

1 ct= $50.00

SM

Soybean Meal

CBOT

9:30-1:15

F,H,K,N,Q,U,V,Z

100 tons

1 pt.= $1.00

BO

Soybean Oil

CBOT

9:30-1:15

F,H,K,N,Q,U,V,Z

60,000 lbs

1 pt.= $6.00

FC

Feeder Cattle

CME

9:05-1:00

F,H,J,K,Q,U,V,X

50,000 lbs

1 pt.= $5.00

LC

Live Cattle

CME

9:05-1:00

G,J,M,Q,V,Z

40,000 lbs

1 pt.= $4.00

LH

Lean Hogs

CME

9:10-1:00

G,J,M,N,K,Q,V,Z

40,000 lbs

1 pt.= $4.00

PB

Pork Bellies

CME

9:10-1:00

G,H,K,N,Q

40,000 lbs

1 pt.= $4.00

HG

Copper (High Grade)

COMEX

7:10-12:00

F,H,K,N,U,Z

25,000 lbs

1 ct= $12.50

GC

Gold

COMEX

7:20-12:30

G,J,M,Q,V,Z

100 oz

$1= $100

PA

Palladium

COMEX

7:30-12:00

H,M,U,Z

100 oz

1 pt.= $.50

PL

Platinum

COMEX

7:20-12:05

F,J,N,V

50 oz

0 pt.= $.50

SI

Silver

COMEX

7:25-12:25

F,H,K,N,U,Z

5,000 oz

1 pts.= $.50

CC

Cocoa

NYBT

7:00-10:50

H,K,N,U,Z

10 Metric Tons

1 pt.= $10.00

KC

Coffee

NYBT

8:15-11:30

H,K,N,U,Z

37,500 lbs

1 pt.= $18.75

CT

Cotton

NYBT

9:30-1:15

H,K,N,V,Z

50,000 lbs

1 pt.= $5.00

LB

Lumber

CME

9:00-1:05

F,H,K,N,U,X

110,000 bd ft

1 pt.= $.10

OJ

Orange Juice

NYBT

9:00-12:30

F,H,K,N,U,X

15,000 lbs

1 pt.= 17.50

SB

Sugar #11

NYBT

8:00-11:00

H,K,N,V

112,000 lbs

1 pt.= $11.20

CL

Crude Oil

NYMX

9:00-1:30

All Months

1,000 bbl

1 pt.= $10.00

HO

Heating Oil

NYMX

9:00-1:30

All Months

42,000 gal

1 pt.= $4.20

NG

Natural Gas

NYMX

9:00-1:30

All Months

10,000 mm/btu

1 pt.= $10.00

RB

RBOB Gasoline

NYMX

9:00-1:30

All Months

42,000 gal

1 pt.= $4.20

MONTH CODES

F=JAN

J=APR

N=JUL

V=OCT

G=FEB

K=MAY

Q=AUG

X=NOV

H=MAR

M=JUN

U=SEP

Z=DEC


Understanding Contract Specifications

A commodity futures contract is a legally binding agreement between a buyer and a seller to accept or make delivery of a predetermined amount of a commodity at a specified location, during a specific time.  All aspects of the contract are standardized so the only the only aspect left to be negotiated – on an Exchange – is price.

                Because futures contracts are standardized to size, quantity, quality and time of delivery each contract is interchangeable.  For example, if a trader bought (long) a contract of Gold, he/she would not have to accept delivery of Gold if he/she “offset” the contract by selling the contract on the exchange before first notice day of the contract – the date upon which all which commodity contracts are subject to delivery (see list of 1st Notice Days and Options Expirations).

                Commodities are traded on a base unit basis.  For example, if Gold is quoted at $630.00, it means that 1 ounce (the unit) of Gold is worth $630/ounce.  The minimum fluctuation – or the smallest price change aloud by the exchange – is set at $0.1/ounce.  With a contract size of 100 ounces per futures contract, each minimum move is worth $0.10/ounce X 100, or $100 per contract.

                The Units Quoted in the table above will show traders the normal pricing of the above mentioned commodities – for more information on non-listed commodities go to www.COMMODITYALMANAC.com.  For example, Soybeans are quoted in cents/bushel (bu), so when you see a price of 589 ½, that would read as 589 ½ cents/bu - $5.89 ½ per bushel.

                Futures contracts are standardized in size as well.  The contract size represents how much of the commodity is controlled by a futures contract and also how much a move is worth.  For example, Gold futures represent 100 ounces of Gold; as such each $1/ounce move is worth $100 before trading costs (commissions and fees).  For a listing what each contract is worth per unit move see the Point Value column in the table above.

                The futures exchanges also designate a minimum and sometimes maximum amount of movement allowed.  The minimum change, is also known as a “tick” in trading longo.  The value of a “tick” is derived by multiplying the minimum change amount by the contract size.  For example, with a minimum move in Crude Oil being $0.01/bbl, a minimum move is worth $10/bbl given the 1,000 barrel contract size.  The maximum amount of movement is also known as limit, meaning prices can not move than this amount in a single session.  When they reach this threshold, trading beyond this price is halted.


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THE DATA CONTAINED HERE IN ARE BELIEVED TO BE RELIABLE BUT CANNOT BE GUARANTEED AS TO RELIABILITY, ACCURACY, OR COMPLETENESS; AND, AS SUCH ARE SUBJECT TO CHANGE WITHOUT NOTICE.  CFEA WILL NOT BE RESPONSIBLE FOR ANYTHING, WHICH MAY RESULT FROM RELIANCE ON THIS DATA OR THE OPINIONS EXPRESSED HERE IN.

DISCLOSURE OF RISK: THE RISK OF LOSS IN TRADING FUTURES AND OPTIONS CAN BE SUBSTANTIAL; THEREFORE, ONLY GENUINE RISK FUNDS SHOULD BE USED. FUTURES AND OPTIONS MAY NOT BE SUITABLE INVESTMENTS FOR ALL INDIVIDUALS, AND INDIVIDUALS SHOULD CAREFULLY CONSIDER THEIR FINANCIAL CONDITION IN DECIDING WHETHER TO TRADE. OPTION TRADERS SHOULD BE AWARE THAT THE EXERCISE OF A LONG OPTION WOULD RESULT IN A FUTURES POSITION.

HYPOTHETICAL PERFORMANCE RESULTS HAVE MANY INHERENT LIMITATIONS, SOME OF WHICH ARE DESCRIBED BELOW. 

NO REPRESENTATION IS BEING MADE THAT ANY ACCOUNT WILL, OR IS LIKELY TO, ACHIEVE PROFITS OR LOSSES SIMILAR TO THOSE SHOWN. IN FACT, THERE ARE FREQUENTLY SHARP DIFFERENCES BETWEEN HYPOTHETICAL PERFORMANCE RESULTS AND THE ACTUAL RESULTS SUBSEQUENTLY ACHIEVED BY ANY PARTICULAR TRADING PROGRAM. 

ONE OF THE LIMITATIONS OF HYPOTHETICAL PERFORMANCE RESULTS IS THAT THEY ARE GENERALLY PREPARED WITH THE BENEFIT OF HINDSIGHT. IN ADDITION, HYPOTHETICAL TRADING DOES NOT INVOLVE FINANCIAL RISK, AND NO HYPOTHETICAL TRADING RECORD CAN COMPLETELY ACCOUNT FOR THE IMPACT OF FINANCIAL RISK IN ACTUAL TRADING. FOR EXAMPLE, THE ABILITY TO WITHSTAND LOSSES OR TO ADHERE TO A PARTICULAR TRADING PROGRAM, IN SPITE OF TRADING LOSSES, ARE MATERIAL POINTS WHICH CAN ALSO ADVERSELY AFFECT ACTUAL TRADING RESULTS. THERE ARE NUMEROUS OTHER FACTORS RELATED TO THE MARKETS, IN GENERAL, OR TO THE IMPLEMENTATION OF ANY SPECIFIC TRADING PROGRAM WHICH CANNOT BE FULLY ACCOUNTED FOR IN THE PREPARATION OF HYPOTHETICAL PERFORMANCE RESULTS AND ALL OF WHICH CAN ADVERSELY AFFECT ACTUAL TRADING RESULTS.