In the futures market, if the spot price is lower than the futures price, the basis is negative, and the forward futures price is higher than the recent futures price. This situation is called "futures premium", also known as "spot discount", and the part where the forward futures price exceeds the recent futures price is called "premium".

If the forward futures price is lower than the recent futures price and the spot price is higher than the futures price, the basis is positive, which is called "futures discount" or "spot premium". The part where the forward futures price is lower than the recent futures price is called "futures discount rate".