Appendix AMaster ticker & contract-spec tables
Quick-reference tickers by asset class. Contract sizes and tick values drift over time and vary by exchange — treat these as a map, and confirm the live spec with the exchange before you trade.
| Instrument | Future | Micro | ETF |
|---|---|---|---|
| S&P 500 | ES | MES | SPY / VOO |
| Nasdaq-100 | NQ | MNQ | QQQ |
| Dow 30 | YM | MYM | DIA |
| Russell 2000 | RTY | M2K | IWM |
| VIX (volatility) | VX | VXM | VXX / UVXY / SVXY |
| US Dollar Index | DX | — | UUP |
| Instrument | Future | ETF |
|---|---|---|
| 2-year note | ZT | SHY |
| 5-year note | ZF | IEI |
| 10-year note | ZN | IEF |
| 30-year bond / ultra | ZB / UB | TLT |
| 3-month SOFR | SR3 | — |
| 30-day Fed Funds | ZQ | — |
| Investment-grade / high-yield credit | — | LQD / HYG · JNK |
| Instrument | Future | Unit | ETF |
|---|---|---|---|
| WTI crude | CL | 1,000 bbl | USO |
| Brent crude | BZ / B | 1,000 bbl | BNO |
| RBOB gasoline | RB | 42,000 gal | — |
| Heating oil / ULSD | HO | 42,000 gal | — |
| Henry Hub nat gas | NG | 10,000 MMBtu | UNG |
| Dutch gas (Europe) | TTF | per MWh | — |
| Asian LNG | JKM | per MMBtu | — |
| EU carbon | EUA | 1,000 t CO₂ | — |
| Instrument | Future | Unit | ETF |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gold | GC | 100 oz | GLD / IAU |
| Silver | SI | 5,000 oz | SLV |
| Platinum | PL | 50 oz | PPLT |
| Palladium | PA | 100 oz | PALL |
| Copper (COMEX) | HG | 25,000 lb | CPER |
| Base metals (Al, Ni, Zn, Pb, Sn) | LME | varies | — |
| Instrument | Ticker | Unit |
|---|---|---|
| Corn | ZC | 5,000 bu (¢/bu) |
| Wheat (Chicago / KC / Minneapolis) | ZW / KE / MW | 5,000 bu |
| Soybeans | ZS | 5,000 bu |
| Soybean meal / oil | ZM / ZL | $/ton · ¢/lb |
| Palm oil | FCPO | 25 t (MYR/t) |
| Coffee (Arabica / Robusta) | KC / RC | 37,500 lb |
| Sugar (#11 raw / white) | SB / W | 112,000 lb |
| Cocoa | CC | 10 t |
| Cotton | CT | 50,000 lb |
| Orange juice (FCOJ) | OJ | 15,000 lb |
| Live / feeder cattle, lean hogs | LE / GF / HE | varies |
| Instrument | CME future (full / micro) | ETF |
|---|---|---|
| Bitcoin | BTC / MBT | IBIT / FBTC · BITO (futures) |
| Ether | ETH / MET | ETHA |
Appendix BThe complete formula sheet
Every formula from the manual in one place, with a one-line worked example each. Section references point back to the full explanation.
[F+E]Futures & leverage (Part 1)
Notional = Index × Multiplier → 5,400 × $50 = $270,000
Tick value = Tick size × Multiplier → 0.25 × $50 = $12.50
Futures P&L = (Exit−Entry)÷Tick × TickVal × N → 50 ticks × $12.50 × 2 = $1,250
Effective leverage = Total notional ÷ Equity → $540,000 ÷ $100,000 = 5.4×
[F+E]Carry, roll & position sizing (Parts 1, 4, 9)
Cost-of-carry fwd = S × (1 + r + s − y) → 2,300 × 1.055 = $2,426.50
Roll yield (per roll) = (Near − Next) ÷ Near → (78.00−78.80)÷78.00 = −1.03%
Roll yield (annual) ≈ slope × (12 ÷ months) → −3.85% × 4 = −15.4%/yr
Risk per trade = Account × Risk% → $100,000 × 1% = $1,000 (1R)
Position size = Risk ÷ (Entry − Stop)/unit → $1,000 ÷ $1,500 = 0.67 lots
[F+E]Indices, vol & options (Parts 1, 2)
Price-weighted index = Σ prices ÷ Divisor → 600 ÷ 0.152 = 3,947
Member weight (cap) = Member cap ÷ Total cap → $3tn ÷ $50tn = 6.0%
VIX → daily move ≈ VIX ÷ 16 → 16 ÷ 16 = ±1.0%/day
Call profit = max(S−K,0)×100 − Premium → (12×100) − 500 = $700
Leveraged-ETF decay (3×, +10% then −9.09%) → round-trip = −5.45%
[F+E]Rates & bonds (Part 3)
Current yield = Coupon ÷ Price → 3 ÷ 94 = 3.19%
% price change ≈ −ModDuration × Δyield → −8 × 0.50% = −4.0%
[F+E]Commodity spreads (Parts 5, 6, 7)
WTI–Brent spread = WTI − Brent → 78.00 − 82.50 = −$4.50
3:2:1 crack = [(2G+1H)×42 − 3×Crude] ÷ 3 → (312.90 − 234)÷3 = $26.30/bbl
Soybean crush = MealVal + OilVal − Beans → 12.87 − 12.00 = $0.87/bu
Gold–silver ratio = Gold ÷ Silver → 2,300 ÷ 28.75 = 80
[F+E]Crypto (Part 8)
Funding payment = Notional × Funding rate → $50,000 × 0.01% = $5 / 8h
Annualised basis = (Fut−Spot)÷Spot × 365÷Days → 2.5% × 4.01 = ≈10%/yr
[F+E]Market sizing (Part 4)
Physical value = Annual production × Price
Open notional = Open interest × Contract size × Price
Daily traded = Daily volume × Contract size × Price
Appendix CGlossary
| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
| API gravity | A measure of crude oil density; higher = lighter = generally more valuable. |
| Backwardation | Forward curve where nearer contracts are priced above later ones — signals tight prompt supply. |
| Basis | The difference between a futures price and the spot price. |
| Basis point (bp) | 0.01%. 50 bp = 0.50%. |
| Beta | Sensitivity to the broad market; beta-1 moves one-for-one with the index. |
| Contango | Forward curve where later contracts are priced above nearer ones — causes roll drag for longs. |
| Convenience yield | The benefit of holding the physical commodity; rises when supply is tight. |
| COT | Commitments of Traders — weekly CFTC report of who's positioned which way in futures. |
| Crack spread | A refiner's margin: products' value minus crude cost. |
| Crush spread | A soybean processor's margin: meal + oil value minus bean cost. |
| CTD | Cheapest-to-deliver — the bond a Treasury future is effectively priced off. |
| Duration | A bond's price sensitivity to yield changes; higher = more rate-sensitive. |
| DV01 | Dollar value of a 1 bp yield move — the cash version of duration. |
| ETN | Exchange-traded note — an issuer's debt promise (carries credit risk), unlike an ETF. |
| Funding rate | Periodic payment between longs and shorts that tethers a perpetual swap to spot. |
| Greeks | Option sensitivities: delta (price), gamma (delta), theta (time), vega (volatility). |
| Halving | The ~4-yearly halving of Bitcoin's new-issuance rate. |
| Implied volatility | The market's expected future movement, embedded in option prices. |
| Initial / maintenance margin | The deposit to open a futures position / the minimum equity to keep it open. |
| Mark-to-market | Daily revaluation of a position, with cash gains/losses settled each day. |
| NAV | Net asset value — the per-share value of a fund's holdings. |
| Notional | The full economic exposure of a position (not the margin posted). |
| Open interest | The number of futures/options contracts currently open. |
| Perpetual swap | A crypto futures-style contract with no expiry, kept on price by funding. |
| Real rate | Interest rate after inflation — the key driver of gold and long-duration assets. |
| Roll | Closing an expiring contract and opening a later one to maintain exposure. |
| Roll yield | The gain/loss from rolling along the curve — negative in contango, positive in backwardation. |
| Spread | A long/short pair in related instruments, isolating their price difference. |
| Tick | The minimum price increment of a contract; tick value = its dollar worth. |
| WASDE | The USDA's monthly supply/demand report — the big scheduled ag catalyst. |
| Yield curve | A plot of yields across maturities; its shape signals growth and policy expectations. |
Appendix DData, sources & the release calendar
Where to confirm the live figures this manual deliberately keeps approximate. Always verify specs, sizes and prices at the source before trading.
| Domain | Go-to source |
|---|---|
| Equity index & futures specs | CME Group, Cboe, the index providers (S&P Dow Jones, Nasdaq, FTSE Russell) |
| Rates, Treasuries, auctions | US Treasury, the Federal Reserve, SIFMA |
| Oil & gas inventories / demand | EIA (weekly & monthly), IEA, OPEC, API |
| Metals | CME/COMEX, the London Metal Exchange, the World Gold Council |
| Agriculture | USDA (WASDE, crop reports), the relevant exchanges (CME, ICE, Bursa Malaysia) |
| Macro data | BLS (CPI, jobs), BEA (GDP, PCE), the Federal Reserve (FOMC) |
| Positioning | CFTC Commitments of Traders (weekly) |
| Crypto | CME (regulated futures), the spot-ETF issuers, on-chain & market-data providers |
[Size]A standing reminder on figures
Throughout this manual, market sizes, contract specs, expense ratios and prices are given as orders of magnitude for intuition, not live quotes. Exchanges change specs, issuers change fees, and prices change by the second. The skill the manual teaches — reading a spec, sizing a market three ways, computing roll and carry — is permanent; the specific numbers are not. Verify before you trade.