Jason Fernando is a professional investor and writer who enjoys tackling and communicating complex business and financial problems. Chip Stapleton is a Series 7 and Series 66 license holder, CFA Level ...

Julia Kagan is a financial/consumer journalist and former senior editor, personal finance, of Investopedia. Vikki Velasquez is a researcher and writer who has managed, coordinated, and directed ...

Futures contracts are agreements to buy or sell a specific underlying asset, such as a commodity or a stock, at a predetermined future price and date. Investors use futures contracts – futures for ...

Options on futures are a kind of contract that gives an investor the right to buy or sell futures at a specific price in a specific period. Options on futures, therefore, layer the "optionality" of ...

When using the term stock market futures, typically market participants are referring to stock indices futures. A futures contract, regardless of the underlying asset, is an agreement between parties ...

Index futures, also referred to as stock index futures or equity index futures, are futures contracts where the buyer and seller agree to buy or sell a stock index at a future price and date. Index ...

Despite its relatively short history, the energy futures contract has become an essential part of the modern financial system, thanks to its efficiency in controlling volatility in the price of ...

Spot trading involves buying or selling an asset at its current market price for immediate delivery. Futures trading uses contracts to set a price and delivery date for a future transaction, allowing ...

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Oil futures are financial contracts that allow participants to buy or sell a specific quantity of oil at a predetermined price on a future date. These contracts serve as an agreement between the buyer ...