E-mini

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E-minis are futures contracts that represent a fraction of the value of standard futures. They are traded primarily on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. As of April, 2011, CME lists 44 unique E-mini contracts, [1] of which approximately 10 have average daily trading volumes of over 1,000 contracts. [2]

Contents

Some E-mini contracts provide trading advantages, including high liquidity (and therefore tight spread), greater affordability for individual investors due to lower margin requirements than the full-size contracts, and round-the-clock trading 23.25 hours a day from Sunday afternoon to Friday afternoon. Under U.S. tax law, E-minis may qualify as 1256 Contracts, and benefit from several tax advantages as well.

The risk of loss is also amplified by the higher leverage.

Symbology

Most E-mini futures expire quarterly (with the exception of agricultural products), in March, June, September, and December. An E-mini future symbol is formed by starting with the root symbol and adding the expiration month letter (the same as for futures) and the last digit of the expiration year. For example, the E-mini S&P 500 expiring in December 2012 has the symbol ESZ2.

E-mini contracts

The table below lists some of the more popular E-mini contracts, with the initial and maintenance margins required by CME. [1] Note that individual brokers may require different margin amounts (also called performance bonds).

E-minis
E-mini contractExchangeTicker symbolMultiplierTick sizeTick valueInitial marginMaintenance marginAverage Daily Volume in 2018 [2]
E-Mini S&P 500 (Dollar) CME ES$500.25$12.50 [3] $13,200$12,0001,766,663
Micro E-mini S&P 500 [4] CMEMES$50.25$1.25$1,320$1,200
E-Mini S&P 500 (Euro)CMEEME€500.25€12.50 [5] €6,188€4,950
E-mini Dow ($5) Futures CMEYM$51$5 [6] $13,200$12,000239,382
Micro E-mini Dow [4] CMEMYM$0.501$0.50$1,320$1,200
E-mini S&P MidCap 400 Futures CMEEMD$1000.10$10 [7] $7,500$6,00019,647
E-mini S&P SmallCap 600 Futures CMESMC$1000.10$10 [8] $3,250$2,6000
E-mini NASDAQ-100 Futures CMENQ$200.25$5 [9] $16,500$15,000492,839
Micro E-mini Nasdaq-100 [4] CMEMNQ$20.25$0.50$1,500$1,500
E-mini NASDAQ Composite Futures CMEQCN$200.50$10 [10] $4,000$3,200
E-mini NASDAQ Biotechnology Futures CMEBIO$500.10$5 [11] $3,750$3,000
E-mini S&P CNX Nifty (Nifty 50) futuresCMEEMF$100.5$5 [12] $3,125$2,500216
E-mini FTSE/XINHUA China 25 FuturesCMEFXN$55$25 [13] $13,750$11,000
E-mini JPY/USD FuturesCMEJ76,250,000 Japanese yen$.000001$6.25 [14] $3,038$2,250648
E-mini EUR/USD FuturesCMEE762,500 euro$.0001$6.25 [15] $2,025$1,5004,859
E-mini Consumer Discretionary Select Sector FuturesCMEXAY$1000.10$10 [16] $3,125$2,500944
E-mini Consumer Staples Select Sector FuturesCMEXAP$1000.10$10 [17] $1,750$1,4001,335
E-mini Energy Select Sector FuturesCMEXAF$2500.05$12.50 [18] $6,500$5,2001,823
E-mini Health Care Select Sector FuturesCMEXAV$1000.10$10 [19] $2,500$2,0001,207
E-mini Industrial Select Sector FuturesCMEXAI$1000.10$10 [20] $3,125$2,5001,094
E-mini Materials Select Sector FuturesCMEXAB$1000.10$10 [21] $3,125$2,500668
E-mini Technology Select Sector FuturesCMEXAK$1000.10$10 [22] $1,750$1,4001,945
E-mini Utilities Select Sector FuturesCMEXAU$1000.10$10 [23] $2,500$2,0002,057
Mini-Sized Corn FuturesCME (formerly CBOT)YC1,000 bushels (~ 25 Metric Tons)$0.00125$1.25 [24] $473$350472
Mini-sized Soybean FuturesCME (formerly CBOT)YK1,000 bushels (~ 27 metric tons)$0.00125$1.25 [25] $945$7001,086
Mini-sized Wheat FuturesCME (formerly CBOT)YW1,000 bushels (~ 27 metric tons)$0.00125$1.25 [26] $810$600349
E-mini Light Sweet Crude Oil (Financial)CME (formerly NYMEX)QM500 barrels$0.025$12.50 [27] $3,375$2,50018,621
E-mini Natural Gas FuturesCME (formerly NYMEX)QG2,500 million BTUs $0.005$12.50 [28] $1,013$7501,718
E-mini Heating Oil - Financial FuturesCME (formerly NYMEX)QH21,000 gallons$0.001$21 [29] $3,206$2,3750
E-mini New York Harbor RBOB Gasoline FuturesCME (formerly NYMEX)QU21,000 gallons$0.0001$2.10 [30] $3,881$2,8750
COMEX E-Mini Gold FuturesCME (formerly COMEX)QO50 troy ounces$0.25$12.5 [31] $3,376$2,500383
E-mini Silver FuturesCME (formerly COMEX)6Q1,000 troy ounces$0.005$5 [32] $2,349$1,74053
COMEX miNY CopperCME (formerly COMEX)QC12,500 pounds$0.002$25 [33] $2,869$2,12521
Russell 1000® Index Mini Futures ICE (formerly NYBOT)RF$100$0.10$10 [34] 727
Russell 2000® Index Mini FuturesICE (formerly NYBOT)TF$50$0.10$5 [35] 150,100
Micro E-mini Russell 2000 [4] CMEM2K$50.10$0.50

E-mini options

Options on E-minis exist for the E-mini S&P 500 [36] and the E-mini NASDAQ-100. [37]

See also

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References

  1. 1 2 "Outright Margins / Performance Bond Requirements". CME Group.
  2. 1 2 "CME Group Exchange ADV Report (Dec 2018)" (PDF). Archive of all monthly, open interest and average daily value reports year-to-date. CME Group. Retrieved 29 January 2019.
  3. ↑ "E-mini S&P 500 Futures - Contract specifications". CME Group. Retrieved 16 April 2011.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Trade Micro E-mini Futures - Active Trader – CME Group
  5. ↑ "E-mini S&P 500 Euro Futures - Contract specifications". CME Group. Retrieved 16 April 2011.
  6. ↑ "E-mini Dow ($5) Futures - Contract specifications". CME Group. Retrieved 16 April 2011.
  7. ↑ "E-mini S&P MidCap 400 Futures - Contract specifications". CME Group. Retrieved 16 April 2011.
  8. ↑ "E-mini S&P SmallCap 600 Futures - Contract specifications". CME Group. Retrieved 16 April 2011.
  9. ↑ "E-mini NASDAQ-100 Futures - Contract specifications". CME Group. Retrieved 16 April 2011.
  10. ↑ "E-mini NASDAQ Composite Futures - Contract specifications". CME Group. Retrieved 16 April 2011.
  11. ↑ "E-mini NASDAQ Biotechnology Futures - Contract specifications". CME Group. Retrieved 16 April 2011.
  12. ↑ "E-mini S&P CNX Nifty (Nifty 50) futures - Contract specifications". CME Group. Retrieved 16 April 2011.
  13. ↑ "E-mini FTSE/XINHUA China 25 Futures - Contract specifications". CME Group. Retrieved 16 April 2011.
  14. ↑ "E-mini JPY/USD Futures - Contract specifications". CME Group. Retrieved 16 April 2011.
  15. ↑ "E-mini JPY/USD Futures - Contract specifications". CME Group. Retrieved 16 April 2011.
  16. ↑ "E-mini Consumer Discretionary Select Sector Futures - Contract specifications". CME Group. Retrieved 16 April 2011.
  17. ↑ "E-mini Consumer Staples Select Sector Futures - Contract specifications". CME Group. Retrieved 16 April 2011.
  18. ↑ "E-mini Energy Select Sector Futures - Contract specifications". CME Group. Retrieved 16 April 2011.
  19. ↑ "E-mini Health Care Select Sector Futures - Contract specifications". CME Group. Retrieved 16 April 2011.
  20. ↑ "E-mini Industrial Select Sector Futures - Contract specifications". CME Group. Retrieved 16 April 2011.
  21. ↑ "E-mini Materials Select Sector Futures - Contract specifications". CME Group. Retrieved 16 April 2011.
  22. ↑ "E-mini Technology Select Sector Futures - Contract specifications". CME Group. Retrieved 16 April 2011.
  23. ↑ "E-mini Utilities Select Sector Futures - Contract specifications". CME Group. Retrieved 16 April 2011.
  24. ↑ "Mini-Sized Corn Futures - Contract specifications". CME Group. Retrieved 17 April 2011.
  25. ↑ "Mini-sized Soybean Futures - Contract specifications". CME Group. Retrieved 17 April 2011.
  26. ↑ "Mini-sized Wheat Futures - Contract specifications". CME Group. Retrieved 17 April 2011.
  27. ↑ "E-mini Crude Oil Futures - Contract specifications". CME Group. Retrieved 16 April 2011.
  28. ↑ "E-mini Natural Gas Futures - Contract specifications". CME Group. Retrieved 16 April 2011.
  29. ↑ "E-mini Heating Oil - Financial Futures - Contract specifications". CME Group. Retrieved 16 April 2011.
  30. ↑ "E-mini RBOB Gasoline - Financial Futures - Contract specifications". CME Group. Retrieved 16 April 2011.
  31. ↑ "COMEX miNY Gold Futures - Contract specifications". CME Group. Retrieved 17 April 2011.
  32. ↑ "E-mini Silver Futures - Contract specifications". CME Group. Retrieved 17 April 2011.
  33. ↑ "E-mini Copper Futures - Contract specifications". CME Group. Retrieved 17 April 2011.
  34. ↑ "Russell 1000® Index Mini Futures - Contract specifications". CME Group. Archived from the original on 20 July 2011. Retrieved 16 April 2011.
  35. ↑ "Russell 2000® Index Mini Futures - Contract specifications". CME Group. Archived from the original on 6 June 2011. Retrieved 16 April 2011.
  36. ↑ "E-mini S&P 500 Options". CME Group. Retrieved 16 April 2011.
  37. ↑ "E-mini NASDAQ-100 Options". CME Group. Retrieved 16 April 2011.
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