At the other end of the scale, futures and options are just a calculated bet on which way prices will swing. The aim is to sell at a high price and buy at a low price. The difference between the two is the profit. Leverage Futures and options allow investors to use a relatively small amount of money to make an investment of a much larger value. In financial terms, this is called leverage .
Every futures contract is traded on an exchange according to a fixed set of rules.
Each contract has very tight specifications, among them the standard size of the contract. For example, one U.S. wheat contract always represents 5,000 bushels of wheat. Almost all futures and options contracts are in U.S. dollars. Most contracts expire within a year or so, though some do have a longer shelf life. After that, contracts aren't yet available, but March 2003 wheat futures will become available and will be listed on the exchange as time rolls on and as the nearby contracts expire.