- What product is being launched and when?
- What is the need for a smaller-sized fertilizer contract?
- What is the tick size for this contract?
- What is the product code?
- What is the rulebook chapter?
- Is this contract physically or financially settled?
- How can these contracts be traded?
- What are the hours for trading on ClearPort and on Globex?
- The futures contracts are available to trade as a block. How does it work?
- Is crossing permitted?
- What are the position limits for 10-Ton Urea U.S. Gulf futures?
- What is the listing cycle?
- Can I utilize Exchange for Physical (EFP) order types in this 10-Ton Urea U.S. Gulf contract?
- Who can I contact with more questions?
1. What product is being launched and when?
CME Group is launching 10-Ton Urea U.S. Gulf futures and options on futures* on the CBOT Designated Contract Market (DCM) with a first trade date of June 2, 2025. The July 2025 contract was the first listed month available for trading and clearing.
The 10-Ton Urea U.S. Gulf futures contract is 1/10 the size of the existing Urea (Granular) FOB U.S. Gulf. It is cash-settled to the arithmetic average of midpoint price assessments published daily by both ICIS (Granular Barges Spot FOB USG 0-30 Days) and Profercy (U.S. Gulf $ps ton fob 30 days) during the contract month.
The smaller-sized contract allows for more precise hedging, making it ideal for U.S. users of urea.
*Pending regulatory review
2. What is the need for a smaller-sized fertilizer contract?
The current Urea (Granular) FOB U.S. Gulf contract trades bilaterally, meaning brokers match buyers and sellers. This functionality is only available to Eligible Contract Participants (the definition of ECP can be found in Section 1a(18) of the Commodity Exchange Act) which excludes many domestic consumers of urea. Additionally, the existing contract trades almost entirely in 15-lot increments, which is the size of a barge.
The new 10-Ton contract allows for more precise hedging and enables the U.S. consumers of urea to participate in a screen-based market.
3. What is the tick size for this contract?
The tick size for futures and options is $1.00 per short ton, or $10 per contract.
4. What is the product code?
The product code is MFV for futures and options.
5. What is the rulebook chapter?
10-Ton Urea U.S. Gulf futures are CBOT Rulebook chapter 48 and options on 10-Ton Urea U.S. Gulf futures are CBOT Rulebook chapter 48A.
6. Is this contract physically or financially settled?
This contract is financially settled to the arithmetic average of midpoint price assessments published daily by both ICIS (Granular Barges Spot FOB USG 0-30 Days) and Profercy (U.S. Gulf $ps ton fob 30 days) during the contract month.
7. How can these contracts be traded?
The contracts are available for trading on the Globex electronic trading platform and for submission for clearing via ClearPort.
8. What are the hours for trading on ClearPort and on Globex?
Trades may be entered on Globex Monday – Friday: 8:30 a.m. – 2:30 p.m. CT.
Trades may be entered on ClearPort starting Sunday 5:00 p.m. – Friday 5:45 p.m. CT with no reporting Monday – Thursday from 5:45 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. CT.
9. The futures contracts are available to trade as a block. How does it work?
The minimum block size for 10-Ton Urea U.S. Gulf futures and options are 10 contracts (100 tons), subject to a 15-minute reporting window.
Subject to certain requirements such as eligibility and minimum size, the futures and options contracts can be privately negotiated via brokers as a block trade and submitted into ClearPort for clearing.
As noted, firms need to be classified as Eligible Contract Participants (ECP) to engage in block trades. The definition of ECP can be found in Section 1a(18) of the Commodity Exchange Act.
10. Is crossing permitted?
Yes, committed cross (c-cross) and Globex cross (g-cross) are permitted futures crossing protocols for participants who engage in pre-execution communications pursuant to Rule 539. Pre-execution communications allow for size, price and direction to be discussed prior to the entry of orders into Globex.
11. What are the position limits for 10-Ton Urea U.S. Gulf futures
10-Ton Urea U.S. Gulf futures and options will aggregate on a 10:1 ratio into Urea (Granular) FOB U.S. Gulf futures (UFV) and options (UGO) and will be subject to a spot month limit of 400 as well as single and all month accountability levels of 1,000.
12. What is the listing cycle?
The futures and options listing cycle includes monthly expiries listed for 12 consecutive months.
13. Can I utilize Exchange for Physical (EFP) order types in this 10-Ton Urea U.S. Gulf contract?
Yes, you can EFP a financially settled contract, including 10-Ton Urea U.S. Gulf futures.
14. Who can I contact with more questions?
Contact us with questions at fertilizer@cmegroup.com.
Need a larger-sized contract?
Grow your protection with our suite of standard-sized, cash-settled Fertilizer futures and options.
All examples in this report are hypothetical interpretations of situations and are used for explanation purposes only. The views in this report reflect solely those of the author and not necessarily those of CME Group or its affiliated institutions. This report and the information herein should not be considered investment advice or the results of actual market experience.
