Futures & Margin Trading, BAS-WHE
Futures contracts allow traders and investors to speculate on the direction ofâand hedge underlying positions inâstock indexes, interest rates, commodities, precious metals, and more.
Futures & Margin Trading Encyclopedia Articles By Title
Basics of margin calls: An unpleasant flip side of using leverage
A margin call is the kind of call no investor or trader wants to get. When you invest or trade in a margin account,......
Brewing up volatility: Why and how triple witching days can shake up markets
Halloween comes just once a year, but Wall Street types donât mind a good scare more oftenâin the form of a financial......
Commitments of Traders (COT) report: Tracking the big commodity players
Regulators, such as the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and financial exchanges have taken multiple......
Contango vs. backwardation: Whatâs the difference?
If youâre an investor whoâs new to the world of the futures markets, you might be confused by the so-called futures......
Cryptocurrency futures: A new way to ride the crypto wave, with some old-school trading twists
Crypto traders might consider themselves light-years removed from their boisterous, brawling ancestors who bought......
Different margin for different traders: Reg T, futures margin, and portfolio margin
Margin is used by different types of traders and investors in different ways. Trading on margin (aka trading with......
Futures contract specifications: Know the delivery terms before jumping in
Considering a play in the futures market? In futures contractsâas with any investmentâspecifics matter. In the......
Futures delivery basics: Cash vs. physical
The concept of delivery is fundamental to the origin story of the American futures market, going all the way back......
How basis trading works (and why borrowing big makes it risky)
Basis trading is a common strategy used by professional investors to profit from the small price difference between......
How do crude oil prices affect gasoline prices?
When crude oil jumps, gasoline prices typically follow. After all, crude is gasolineâs main ingredient. And when......
Margin account vs. cash account: What to know before you trade
In the dynamic world of finance, understanding the nuances between different types of investment accounts is important......
Mark-to-market, variation margin, and daily settlement in futures
Margin is one of the most importantâand yet often misunderstoodâconcepts in futures trading. In equities, margin......
Perpetual futures: A crypto-driven force reshaping global markets
The future no longer has a âsell-byâ date. Thatâs the idea behind perpetual futures, a fast-growing new type of......
Prediction markets: The intersection of forecasting and investing
Prediction markets exist at the intersection of crowd wisdom, financial innovation, and speculative trading. They......
Reading market signals: The role of volume and open interest
Traders like to âfollow the money,â and in the futures markets, two clues can help: trading volume and open interest.......
Single-stock futures: Trading individual stocks without owning them
Shares of some of the worldâs biggest companiesâAmazon, Apple, NVIDIA, and othersâare among the most actively traded......
The gold-silver ratio: Industrial growth, flights to safety, and storing value
Gold and silver have been used as both monetary metals and stores of value for well over two millennia. Although......
Top USDA reports: Under-the-radar numbers that move markets
If youâre at all connected to the financial markets, youâre likely familiar with the monthly Employment Situation......
What is a futures contract?
What will the price of a barrel of oil be in six months? How much will a bushel of wheat set you back a year from......
What is leverage in trading? A powerful tool for doing more with less
Leverage is a part of everyday financial existence for consumers. Anyone whoâs taken out a mortgage to buy a house......
When the upside is down: An intro to short selling of stocks
Itâs risky. Itâs complex. And if you want approval, you have to jump through hoops. Sounds like the marketing pitch......