spot-exchange market

finance

Also known as: spot market

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July 14, 2026

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The spot-exchange market, often referred to as the "spot market," deals with the immediate buying and selling of assets at their current price, known as the spot price. This price reflects the immediate supply and demand for the asset, and it can fluctuate throughout the day.1

Unlike futures markets, where contracts are for future delivery, the spot market focuses on transactions for immediate delivery and settlement. This process of determining the current price is called price discovery, where buyers and sellers negotiate to reach an agreeable price at a specific moment. Commodity exchanges, such as the Chicago Board of Trade, facilitate the trading of futures contracts, which are based on the spot price of underlying assets.123

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futures
Economic functions of the futures contract
…market may be either a spot market concerned with immediate physical delivery of the specified commodity or a forward market, where the delivery of the specified commodity is made at some later date. Futures markets, on the other hand, generally permit trading in a number of grades of the commodity…
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…market may be either a spot market concerned with immediate physical delivery of the specified commodity or a forward market, where the delivery of the specified commodity is made at some later date. Futures markets, on the other hand, generally permit trading in a number of grades of the commodity…
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international payment and exchange
Forward exchange
…for another are known as spot transactions. There can also be forward transactions, consisting of contracts to exchange one currency for another at a future date, perhaps three months ahead, but at a rate determined now. For instance, a German firm may have a commitment to pay a U.S. firm…
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…for another are known as spot transactions. There can also be forward transactions, consisting of contracts to exchange one currency for another at a future date, perhaps three months ahead, but at a rate determined now. For instance, a German firm may have a commitment to pay a U.S. firm…
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arbitrage
Foreign-exchange arbitrage, confined to spot-exchange markets—in which exchange is bought and sold for immediate delivery—may involve two or more exchange centres (two-point arbitrage or multiple-point arbitrage). For example, assume that Country A’s sovereign is exchanging at two to the dollar in New York City, while Country B’s franc is…
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Foreign-exchange arbitrage, confined to spot-exchange markets—in which exchange is bought and sold for immediate delivery—may involve two or more exchange centres (two-point arbitrage or multiple-point arbitrage). For example, assume that Country A’s sovereign is exchanging at two to the dollar in New York City, while Country B’s franc is…
Read More