Corn tick size

You should see '2, '4 and '6 to denote fractions of a cent in the futures contract prices. You should not see '8.

In options, which are traded in eighths, you'll see '1 to '7; again, you should not see '8

Futures example: 434'6 = $4.3475/bushel (dollars per bu). Some quote services display this as 434.75 (cents per bushel)

Options example: 10'3 = $0.10375/bushel or 10.375 cts per bushel

Min tick size in futures is one quarter of one cent/bu or $12.50 per contract. A one cent move is $50.00

Min tick size in options is one eigth of one cent/bu or $6.25 per contract. A one cent move is $50.00
 
Quote from Brighton:

You should see '2, '4 and '6 to denote fractions of a cent in the futures contract prices. You should not see '8.

In options, which are traded in eighths, you'll see '1 to '7; again, you should not see '8

Futures example: 434'6 = $4.3475/bushel (dollars per bu). Some quote services display this as 434.75 (cents per bushel)

Options example: 10'3 = $0.10375/bushel or 10.375 cts per bushel

Min tick size in futures is one quarter of one cent/bu or $12.50 per contract. A one cent move is $50.00

Min tick size in options is one eigth of one cent/bu or $6.25 per contract. A one cent move is $50.00
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Thanks- no idea why the need to quote like this- but. Thanks
 
Quote from trilogic:

Thanks- no idea why the need to quote like this- but. Thanks
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Once upon a time, data transmission was very expensive and priced by the character. Plus there may have been space constraints on quote boards and old CRTs.

Neither of those reasons exist anymore - I guess it's just tradition and inertia.
 
Quote from Brighton:

Once upon a time, data transmission was very expensive and priced by the character. Plus there may have been space constraints on quote boards and old CRTs.

Neither of those reasons exist anymore - I guess it's just tradition and inertia.
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so:
434= 434

434'2 = 434.25

434'4 = 434.50

434'6 = 434.75

435= 435
 
Exactamundo. You might see a zero ('0), but that just means a whole cent - 434 and 435 in your examples immediately above.
 
Is this a legacy thing? I mean, is this just kept around from pre-computerization days?

If not, why would they be quoted this way?
 
Jack - I don't know why some quote services still use the '2 format. It's been a while since I visited a trading pit; maybe the monitors and big boards surrounding the pits still use that format, too.

Another head-scratcher: Last week, same day, same account, same contract, I traded some corn options. The fills from Interactive Brokers came back as:

18 3/4
19.125
19.250

Their system is obviously capable of three decimal points, but why the heck did I get "18 3/4" (a fraction that requires only two decimal points)? I thought maybe the first set was traded in the pit, but I've got my platform set to "ECBOT" for all the grains and I paid e-contract commissions on all three sets.

:confused:
 
Quote from trilogic:
----explains....
----each tick is 1/4....
----quoted as '2 '6 8'.....
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1) The "2, 4 and 6" indicates eighths of a cent. Since the numerator is an even number and the denominator is eight, it reduces to a quarter-cent tick fluctuation. :)
2) The tick size in the ZC, ZS and ZW used to be one-eighth of a cent until ~1973 when it was raised to one-quarter. :eek:
3) The 1000-bushel, mini-grain contract might still trade with a one-eighth tick but traders avoid that for the quarters instead. :cool:
 
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