Assuming the following :


Lets say that the...... ZB, ZN, ZF and ZT all moved from 151.00 to 151.33


Would the REAL Profit made from this move, be the following for the 4 Financial Markets:

The Profit on ZB , ZN and ZF would = $310 ( $1,000 Point Values x .33 cent move ) ?

And the Profit on ZT would be = $620 ( $2,000 Point Value x .33 cents ) ?


Thanks much for the help

You are correct. A full point is worth $1000 for ZB, ZN, and ZF and 2,000 for ZT.

However, these products do not have the same tick size or volatility. The further out on the yield curve you go the more the price is affected by a move. That's why the different products are given different tick sizes.

So the bond has a tick of 1/32 of a point, and the 10 year note has a tick size of 1/64th of a point. ZB moves about 3 ticks for every one tick of ZN. That's why a tick in ZB is worth $31.25 and a tick in ZN is only worth $15.625. Of course that's not a hard rule because there is spreading and tail risk and all of that.

If the question is which product should I trade then a retail trader generally has a better chance at being profitable with ZB because of the lower tick to commission ratio. However, if you are new to trading treasuries you may do better in ZN because of the higher liquidity.

Thank you for your reply

Is the way I calculated the Profits for the various Bonds correct ........ assuming all 4 Bond Markets , each moved 33 ticks ?

Thank you again

TWDsje 

You are correct. A full point is worth $1000 for ZB, ZN, and ZF and 2,000 for ZT. However, these products do not have the same tick size or volatility. The further out on the yield curve you go the more the price is affected by a move. That's why the different products are given different tick sizes. So the bond has a tick of 1/32 of a point, and the 10 year note has a tick size of 1/64th of a point. ZB moves about 3 ticks for every one tick of ZN. That's why a tick in ZB is worth $31.25 and a tick in ZN is only worth $15.625. Of course that's not a hard rule because there is spreading and tail risk and all of that. If the question is which product should I trade then a retail trader generally has a better chance at being profitable with ZB because of the lower tick to commission ratio. However, if you are new to trading treasuries you may do better in ZN because of the higher liquidity.

No, your calculation is wrong.

If you want to calculate 33 ticks:

33 ticks in ZB: 33 x 31.25 = 1031.25
33 ticks in ZN: 33 x 15.625 = 515.625
33 ticks in ZF: 33 x 7.8125 = 257.8125

each full point of this 3 products = $ 1000
each tick in ZB = 1/32, ZN = 1/64, ZF = 1/128
with other words: the ZB moves in ticks, the ZN moves in half ticks and the ZF moves in quarter ticks

p.s.: once more to your first post: 151 + 33 ticks isn't 151.33, it is 152.01

I think where you're getting confused is that a point and a tick aren't the same thing.

ZB 1 point = 32 ticks.
ZN 1 point = 64 ticks.