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I've always referred to the smallest amount of a futures contract as being 1 lot or 1 car.
I have 4 years trading experience and 2 years of futures full time.
This trader on another site keeps correcting me every time I say 1 lot.
I would like to clear this up.
Does 1 lot = 1 car = 1 contract? Yes or No. Thank you!
Can you help answer these questions from other members on NexusFi?
To a CME, CBOT floor trader a one "lot" is one "car" and could be referred to as a "contract". Most of the time though, in my experience just a number was used. "short 30", for example.
Contract specifications are available on the CME and CBOT web pages. Corn for example...contract size is 5000 bushels about 127 metric tons. 1/4 of one cent per bushel is $12.50 per contract.
Contract size for 6E is 125,000 Euro with each tick being $12.50 per contract.
In my opinion when talking about regular size contracts no qualifier is necessary. A 3 lot is 3 contracts and 375,000 euros. The mini or the micro are again IMO, the non standard size and in normal discourse should be referred to as mini or micro. a 3 lot mini or three tiny ones would be appropriate...imo
It's from the old days when a contract would equal a railroad car of a particular commodity (e.g. live cattle or wheat). It's since been used as "trader slang" for all kinds of futures.
"Car lot" was used for commodities such as eggs, butter and milk -- which were not transported by rail, but by automobiles.