A bond futures contract is a financial derivative that obligates the contract holder to buy or sell a specified amount of government bonds or other debt securities at a predetermined future date and price.
Bond futures work by allowing investors to speculate on the future direction of interest rates and bond prices, as the contract involves an agreement to buy or sell a standardized amount of bonds at a predetermined future date.
An investor entering into a bond futures contract might agree to buy $100,000 face value of a 10-year government bond at a specified price, anticipating a future increase in bond prices or interest rates.
Bond futures encompass various types such as Treasury bond futures, Eurodollar futures, and municipal bond futures, allowing investors to trade and hedge based on different categories of bonds.
To trade bond futures, an investor can open a futures trading account, analyze market trends and interest rate expectations, place buy or sell orders for standardized contracts.
Bond futures trade on organized futures exchanges, such as the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) or Eurex, where standardized contracts are bought and sold by market participants.