- What is a container?
- What is the contract unit of the futures contracts?
- What are the references of CME Group Container Freight Rate futures?
- What is the launch date?
- How can the futures contracts be traded?
- How do I start trading these contracts?
- The futures contract is available to trade as a block. How does that work?
- How do I start trading and clearing these contracts?
- How do I start trading and clearing these contracts?
1. What is a container?
A container is a standard box used to ship goods.
A twenty-foot equivalent unit (TEU) is a shipping container whose internal dimensions measure about 20 feet long, eight feet wide, and eight feet tall.
Two TEUs have the capacity of a single FEU (forty-foot equivalent unit).
TEU, FEU can be loaded/discharged on trains or trucks from/to almost everywhere.
2. What is the contract unit of the futures contracts?
Container Freight Rate futures are based on FEU rates. One lot represents the rate for one FEU in USD.
For block trade submission, a minimum threshold of ten lots applies (ten FEUs).
3. What are the references of CME Group Container Freight Rate futures?
The futures are based on the container rates for six major trade lanes.
Each trade lane is based on Freightos Baltic FBX trade lanes and calculated from spot rates offered by carriers to international freight forwarders on Freightos Applications.
The floating price of the futures contracts are based on the monthly average of all daily assessments published by the Baltic Exchange.
CME Group lists six contracts for the following lanes:
- Container Freight (China/East Asia to US West Coast) (FBX01) (Baltic) futures
- Container Freight (US West Coast to China/East Asia) (FBX02) (Baltic) futures
- Container Freight (China/East Asia to US East Coast) (FBX03) (Baltic) futures
- Container Freight (China/East Asia to North Europe) (FBX11) (Baltic) futures
- Container Freight (North Europe to China/East Asia) (FBX12) (Baltic) futures
- Container Freight (China/East Asia to Mediterranean) (FBX13) (Baltic) futures
4. What is the launch date?
February 28, 2022*
* Pending regulatory review
5. How can the futures contracts be traded?
The futures contracts are available on CME Globex and for submission as a block trade for clearing via CME ClearPort or CME Direct.
6. How do I start trading these contracts?
Please contact freight@cmegroup.com or any of the inter-dealer brokers (IDBs) that service this market for more information on trading the contract via CME Globex and/or as a block trade on CME ClearPort.
7. The futures contract is available to trade as a block. How does that work?
There are minimum quantity and reporting time requirements for Container Freight Rate futures block trades. The minimum block trade size is ten contracts, and trades need to be reported by the broker onto ClearPort within 15 minutes of execution.
8. How do I start trading and clearing these contracts?
There are various ways you can begin trading these contracts depending on your situation, but we have outlined the simplest and most straightforward process below:
Step one: Register on CME ClearPort.
Step two: Appoint an inter-dealer broker (IDB) that services this market.
Step three: Request your CME Group clearing firm to permission your chosen IDB for trade submission.
Visit our website for more information on getting set up to trade the contract on CME Globex and/or as a block trade on CME ClearPort.
9. What is the listing schedule?
Monthly contracts will be listed for the current and next two consecutive calendar years. Monthly contracts for a new calendar year will be added following the termination of trading for the December contract.
