Category
Agricultural
Exchange
CBOT (CME Group)
Contract Size
5,000 bushels of corn
Symbol
ZC
CBOT Corn futures (ZC) are a benchmark for the global grain market. Corn is the world's most widely produced cereal grain with uses spanning food, animal feed, and ethanol production. Prices are driven by planting reports, weather patterns, USDA crop reports, and ethanol mandate policies.
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Sun 19:00 – Fri 14:20 CT. Day session 08:30–13:20 CT. Electronic session (Globex) more limited.
Day trading margins ~$500–$1,000. Exchange maintenance margin ~$1,500–$2,000.
ICE Cocoa futures track the price of cocoa beans, the key ingredient in chocolate. West Africa (Ivory Coast, Ghana) produces over 60% of the world's cocoa. Supply disruptions from weather, disease, or political instability in these regions can drive significant price volatility. Cocoa prices reached record highs in 2024.
ICE Arabica Coffee futures (KC) are the global benchmark for specialty coffee pricing. Brazil, the world's largest producer, drives supply dynamics. Climate events (frost, drought) in Brazil can cause extreme price spikes. Coffee is one of the most volatile soft commodities. A 1 cent move = $375 per contract.
ICE Cotton No. 2 futures are the global benchmark for cotton pricing. As a major textile input, cotton prices are affected by US planting data, Indian/Chinese production, consumer textile demand, and weather events in key growing regions (US Southern Plains, India, China).
ICE Sugar No. 11 futures are the world benchmark for raw cane sugar pricing. Sugar prices are influenced by Brazilian production (the largest producer/exporter), ethanol blend mandates (which divert cane from sugar to ethanol), monsoon seasons in India, and trade policies.