Latest posts
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What Are Futures Contracts? How They Work
A foundational introduction to futures contracts: what a futures contract is, how margin and leverage work, the difference between speculators and hedgers, and the unique risks of leveraged derivatives trading.
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Futures Margin and Leverage Explained
How initial and maintenance margin work, how leverage is calculated from margin, the mechanics of margin calls, and how to size futures contracts so leverage works for you instead of against you.
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Futures Position Sizing: How Many Contracts to Trade
The exact formula for sizing futures trades from dollar risk and point value — with worked examples for the ES, NQ, CL, GC, and ZN contracts, and the leverage warnings every futures trader must respect.
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Futures Point-Value Contract Sizing
A focused guide to the point-value multiplier that drives every futures sizing calculation — how to read contract specs, convert ticks to dollars, and compare risk across very different futures markets.
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Contango vs. Backwardation: Reading the Futures Curve
How to read the futures curve, what contango and backwardation reveal about supply and demand, how roll yield helps or hurts you, and why curve shape matters for every futures trader and ETF investor.
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Futures Roll Yield: The Hidden Cost of Holding
A deep dive into roll yield — how rolling expiring contracts creates or destroys returns, why it dominates long-term futures outcomes, and how to factor it into your holding-period decisions.
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Overnight Risk and Gaps in Futures Trading
Why futures overnight gaps are among the most dangerous events a trader faces, how to size for them, the role of Globex sessions and locked-limit moves, and how to protect capital when the market is closed.
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Trend-Following Strategies for Futures
How trend-following funds trade futures across commodities, currencies, and indices — breakout and moving-average systems, trailing stops, diversification across markets, and the psychology of low win rates.
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Hedging with Futures Contracts
How producers, consumers, and investors use futures to hedge price risk — the mechanics of a short hedge and a long hedge, basis risk, and how to size a hedge to match your underlying exposure.