Gold Futures

Perhaps no other market in the world has the universal appeal of the gold futures market. For centuries, gold has been coveted for its unique blend of rarity, beauty, and near indestructibility. Nations have embraced gold as a store of wealth and a medium of international exchange; individuals have sought to possess gold as insurance against the day-to-day uncertainties of paper money.

COMEX Division gold futures and options provide an important alternative to traditional means of investing in gold such as bullion, coins, and mining stocks.

Gold futures contracts are also valuable trading tools for commercial producers and users of the metal. Commercial concentrations of gold are found in widely distributed areas: in association with ores of copper and lead, in quartz veins, in the gravel of stream beds, and with pyrites (iron sulfide). Seawater contains astonishing quantities of gold, but its recovery is not economical.

Trading Unit
100 troy ounces.

Price Quotation
U.S. dollars and cents per troy ounce.

Trading Hours (All times are New York time)
Open outcry trading is conducted from 8:20 AM until 1:30 PM.
After-hours electronic trading begins at 2:00 PM on Mondays through Fridays and concludes at 8:00 AM the following day, with the exception of Friday's session which concludes at 4:30 PM that same day. On Sundays, the session begins at 7:00 PM and concludes at 8:00 AM the following day.

Trading Months
Trading is conducted for delivery during the current calendar month; the next two calendar months; any February, April, August, and October falling within a 23-month period; and any June and December falling within a 60-month period beginning with the current month.

Minimum Price Fluctuation
$0.10 (10¢) per troy ounce ($10.00 per contract).

Maximum Daily Price Fluctuation
Initial price limit, based upon the preceding day's settlement price, is $75.00 per ounce. Two minutes after either of the two most active months trades at the limit, trades in all months of futures and options will cease for a 15-minute period. Trading will also cease if either of the two active months is bid at the upper limit or offered at the lower limit for two minutes without trading. Trading will not cease if the limit is reached during the final 20 minutes of a day's trading. If the limit is reached during the final half hour of trading, trading will resume no later than 10 minutes before the normal closing time. When trading resumes after a cessation of trading, the price limits will be expanded by increments of 100%.

Last Trading Day
Trading terminates at the close of business on the third to last business day of the maturing delivery month.

Delivery
Gold delivered against the futures contract must bear a serial number and identifying stamp of a refiner approved and listed by the Exchange. Delivery must be made from a depository licensed by the Exchange.

Delivery Period
The first delivery day is the first business day of the delivery month; the last delivery day is the last business day of the delivery month.

Exchange of Futures for Physicals (EFP)
The buyer or seller may exchange a futures position for a physical position of equal quantity. EFPs may be used to either initiate or liquidate a futures position.

Grade and Quality Specifications
In fulfillment of each contract, the seller must deliver 100 troy ounces (±5%) of refined gold, assaying not less than .995 fineness, cast either in one bar or in three one-kilogram bars, and bearing a serial number and identifying stamp of a refiner approved and listed by the Exchange. A list of approved refiners and assayers is available from the Exchange upon request.

Position Accountability Levels and Limits
Any one month/all months: 6,000 net futures equivalent, but not to exceed 3,000 in the spot month.

Margin Requirements
Margins are required for open futures positions.

Trading Symbol
GC