Crude oil
began futures trading on the NYMEX in 1983 and is the
most heavily traded commodity.
Trading unit: Crude
Oil
Futures
trade
in units of 1,000 U.S. barrels (42,000 gallons).
Options: One NYMEX Division light, sweet crude oil
futures contract
.
Trading Months: Crude
Oil
Futures
trade
30 consecutive months plus long-dated futures
initially listed 36, 48, 60, 72, and 84 months prior
to delivery. Additionally, trading can be executed
at an average differential to the previous day’s
settlement prices for periods of two to 30
consecutive months in a single transaction. These
calendar strips are executed during open outcry
trading hours. Options: 12 consecutive months, plus
three long-dated options at 18, 24, and 36 months
out on a June/December cycle.
Price
Quotation
Crude Oil Futures are
quoted in dollars and cents per barrel.
Minimum Price
Fluctuation: $0.01 (1¢) per barrel ($10 per
contract).
Maximum Daily
Price Fluctuation
Futures: Initial
limits of $3.00 per barrel are in place in all but
the first two months and rise to $6.00 per barrel if
the previous day's settlement price in any
back month is at the $3.00 limit. In the event of a
$7.50 per barrel move in either of the first two
contract months, limits on all months become $7.50
per barrel from the limit in place in the direction
of the move following a one-hour trading halt.
Options: No price
limits.
Last Trading Day
Crude Oil Futures:
Trading terminates at the close of business on the
third business day prior to the 25th calendar day of
the month preceding the delivery month. If the 25th
calendar day of the month is a non-business day,
trading shall cease on the third business day prior
to the last business day preceding the 25th calendar
day.
Options: Trading ends
three business days before the underlying futures
contract.
Delivery
F.O.B. seller's
facility, Cushing, Oklahoma, at any pipeline or
storage facility with pipeline access to TEPPCO,
Cushing storage, or Equilon Pipeline Co., by in-tank
transfer, in-line transfer, book-out, or
inter-facility transfer (pumpover).
Delivery
Period
All deliveries are
rateable over the course of the month and must be
initiated on or after the first calendar day and
completed by the last calendar day of the delivery
month.
Alternate
Delivery Procedure (ADP)
An Alternate Delivery
Procedure is available to buyers and sellers who
have been matched by the Exchange subsequent to the
termination of trading in the spot month contract.
If buyer and seller agree to consummate delivery
under terms different from those prescribed in the
contract specifications, they may proceed on that
basis after submitting a notice of their intention
to the Exchange.
Exchange of
Futures for, or in Connection with, Physicals
(EFP)
The commercial buyer
or seller may exchange a futures position for a
physical position of equal quantity by submitting a
notice to the Exchange. EFPs may be used to either
initiate or liquidate a futures position.
Deliverable
Grades
Specific domestic
crudes with 0.42% sulfur by weight or less, not less
than 37° API gravity nor more than 42° API gravity.
The following domestic crude streams are
deliverable: West Texas Intermediate, Low Sweet Mix,
New Mexican Sweet, North Texas Sweet, Oklahoma
Sweet, South Texas Sweet.
Specific foreign
crudes of not less than 34° API nor more than 42°
API. The following foreign streams are deliverable:
U.K. Brent and Forties, and Norwegian Oseberg Blend,
for which the seller shall receive a 30¢-per-barrel
discount below the final settlement price; Nigerian
Bonny Light and Colombian Cusiana are delivered at
15¢ premiums; and Nigerian Qua Iboe is delivered at
a 5¢ premium.
Inspection
Inspection shall be
conducted in accordance with pipeline practices. A
buyer or seller may appoint an inspector to inspect
the quality of oil delivered. However, the buyer or
seller who requests the inspection will bear its
costs and will notify the other party of the
transaction that the inspection will occur.
Position Limits
Any one month/all
months: 20,000 net futures, but not to exceed 1,000
in the last three days of trading in the spot month.
Margin
Requirements
Margins are required
for open futures or short options positions. The
margin requirement for an options purchaser will
never exceed the premium.
Trading Symbol
Futures: CL
Options: LO
