Micro E-mini S&P 500 Futures Contracts provide exposure to the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index in a contract 1/10th the size of Standard E-mini S&P 500 Futures Contracts. The S&P Benchmark Index consists of 500 large-cap companies and is considered the best metric for large-cap US stocks.
Launched in May 2022 by the CME Group, the Micro E-mini S&P 500 futures contracts were introduced to reduce entry barriers for futures traders looking to participate in the US equity markets. the cards are almost indistinguishable.
Why trade Micro E-mini S&P 500 futures?
Micro E-mini S&P 500 Futures (MES) contracts require less financial commitment than full-size E-minis. Therefore, the MES is an ideal instrument for those who wish to gain exposure to the S&P 500 index with less capital.
Additionally, although you can only trade one ES futures contract, a trader with the same account balance has the ability to move in and out of an MES position with multiple contracts.
MES futures contracts provide investors with long and short opportunities to speculate on the S&P 500. Micro-cap futures contracts allow traders to access US equity markets without significant financial burden or margin requirements.
Micro E-mini S&P 500 futures also trade virtually around the clock electronically and attract traders from around the world.
Micro E-mini S&P 500 Futures (MES) Specifications:
- Swap: Chicago Commercial Exchange (CME)
- Class: Futures contracts
- Trade symbol: MONTH
- Contract size: $5 x S&P 500 Index
- Price unit: U.S. dollars
- brand size: 0 . 25
- Brand value: $1. 25
- Point value: 1 = $5
- Intraday margin: $50
- Month of contract: March, June and September, December
- Trading hours: Sunday – Friday 6:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. ET
- Position limit: 100 contracts
A welcome offer
Instantly gaining popularity, Micro E-mini futures volume exceeded 1 million contracts traded in less than 3 full trading days. The graph below from CME Group shows the hourly volume of Micro E-mini from its initial release on the evening of May 5, 2022 until the morning of May 8.
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