There is no difference between financial futures and commodity futures in trading mechanism, contract characteristics and institutional arrangements, but there are also differences:

First, some financial futures have no real underlying assets (such as stock index futures). ), and commodity futures are traded with physical objects, such as agricultural products;

Second, stock index futures can be liquidated in cash on the delivery date, interest rate futures can be liquidated through the transfer of securities, and commodity futures can be liquidated through the transfer of physical ownership;

Third, the maturity date of financial futures contracts is standardized, generally in March, June, September,1February. The maturity date of commodity futures contracts varies with the characteristics of commodities;

Fourth, the maturity date of financial futures is longer than that of commodity futures, and the futures contract of long-term US government bonds can be valid for several years;

Fifth, the cost of holding is different. The cost of holding a futures contract to the maturity date is the holding cost, which includes three items: storage cost, transportation cost and financing cost. All kinds of goods need to be stored and kept, and storage costs are required. The subject matter of financial futures contracts needs low storage costs, and some, such as stock indexes, don't even need storage costs. If the subject matter of financial futures is deposited in financial institutions, there is still interest, such as stock dividends and foreign exchange interest. Sometimes these benefits will exceed the holding cost, resulting in holding income (that is, negative holding cost);

Sixth, speculative performance is different. Because the financial futures market is more sensitive to external factors than commodity futures, and the futures price fluctuates more frequently and more widely, it is more speculative than commodity futures.

The difference between financial futures trading and financial spot trading

Financial spot, such as bonds and stocks, has property rights to some special subject matter, while financial futures are derivatives of financial spot. The development and perfection of spot trading laid the foundation for financial futures trading. At the same time, financial futures trading is also an extension and supplement of spot trading. The main differences between the two are as follows:

1) The purpose of the transaction is different.

Financial spot trading belongs to property right transfer, and futures trading focuses on risk transfer to obtain reasonable or excess profits. The purpose of most financial futures trading is not to actually get the spot;

2) Different price decisions

Spot trading generally adopts one-to-one negotiation to determine the transaction price, while futures trading must focus on trading, so open bidding is used to determine the transaction price;

3) Different trading systems

Mainly: spot can be held for a long time, while futures have time limit; Futures trading can be short, and spot can only be bought first and then sold; Spot trading is full trading, and futures trading is margin trading, so it is risky. In addition, the fluctuation of futures trading price is limited by the maximum daily fluctuation.

4) The degree of organization of transactions is different.

There are no strict regulations on the place and time of spot trading, and futures trading is strictly limited in the trading hall, with scattered spot trading information and low transparency. Futures trading is relatively centralized, with open information and high transparency; Futures trading has strict trading procedures and rules, which has stronger anti-risk ability than spot market;

The difference between financial futures trading and financial forward contract trading

Financial futures trading is developed on the basis of financial forward contract trading. The biggest thing in common between them is that they both adopt the trading mode of first trading and then delivery, but there are also great differences.

1) Designated Exchange

The first difference between futures and forward trading is that futures must be traded on designated exchanges, and exchanges must be able to provide specific centralized venues. The exchange must also be able to supervise customers' orders and make them complete at a fair and reasonable transaction price. Futures contracts are publicly traded in the trading hall, and the exchange must also ensure that the buying and selling prices at that time can be spread out in a timely and extensive manner, so that futures can enjoy the advantages of trading from the transparency of trading. The forward market organization is relatively loose, there is no exchange, no centralized trading place and no centralized trading methods;

2) Contract standardization

Financial futures contracts are standardized contracts that meet the requirements of the exchange, and there are strict and detailed regulations on the quality, quantity, maturity date, trading time and delivery grade of financial commodities traded, while forward contracts are decided by both parties themselves, without fixed specifications and standards;

3) Deposit and daily settlement

Forward contract transactions usually do not pay margin, and profits and losses are settled after the contract expires. Futures trading, on the other hand, must pay 5%~ 10% of the contract amount as a deposit before trading, which will be settled by the settlement company daily. If there is any surplus, you can extract it. If there is a loss and the book margin is lower than the maintenance level, it must be replenished in time, which is an extremely important security measure to avoid the credit crisis of the exchange.

4) End of position

There are three ways to end a future position. One is to end the original position through hedging or reverse operation, that is, to buy and sell futures contracts with the same quantity and the opposite direction. Second, cash or spot delivery is adopted. Third, barter things. In futures-to-spot trading, two traders promise to exchange spot and futures contracts with spot as the goal. Forward trading is an agreement reached by both parties according to their own needs, so the price, quantity and term are not standardized. If one party breaches the contract halfway, it is usually difficult to find a third party to take over the existing rights and obligations unconditionally. Therefore, the breaching party can only provide additional preferential conditions to terminate the contract or find a third party to take over the original rights and obligations.

5) Participants in the transaction

Most participants in forward contracts are specialized producers, dealers and financial institutions, while futures trading is more public, with high liquidity and efficiency. Participants in a transaction can be banks, companies, financial institutions, individuals, etc.