FUTALGO - Algorithmic Trading Performance Analytics

Overview

Understanding point values is essential for calculating profit and loss in futures trading. The point value represents how much money you make or lose for each point of price movement in a futures contract.

Formula: Profit/Loss = (Exit Price - Entry Price) × Point Value × Number of Contracts

For example, if you buy 1 NQ contract at 20,000 and sell at 20,010, your profit is:

(20,010 - 20,000) × $20 × 1 = $200

Equity Index Futures

The most actively traded futures contracts, tracking major stock market indices.

E-mini Contracts

Symbol	Name	Point Value	Tick Size	Tick Value	Exchange
ES	E-mini S&P 500	$50	0.25	$12.50	CME
NQ	E-mini NASDAQ-100	$20	0.25	$5.00	CME
YM	E-mini Dow ($5)	$5	1.00	$5.00	CBOT
RTY	E-mini Russell 2000	$50	0.10	$5.00	CME

Micro E-mini Contracts

Micro contracts are 1/10th the size of E-mini contracts, making them ideal for smaller accounts and precise position sizing.

Symbol	Name	Point Value	Tick Size	Tick Value	Exchange
MES	Micro E-mini S&P 500	$5	0.25	$1.25	CME
MNQ	Micro E-mini NASDAQ-100	$2	0.25	$0.50	CME
MYM	Micro E-mini Dow	$0.50	1.00	$0.50	CBOT
M2K	Micro E-mini Russell 2000	$5	0.10	$0.50	CME

Full-Size Contracts

Symbol	Name	Point Value	Tick Size	Tick Value	Exchange
SP	S&P 500 (Full)	$250	0.10	$25.00	CME
ND	NASDAQ-100 (Full)	$100	0.25	$25.00	CME

Currency Futures

Major currency pairs traded as futures contracts.

Symbol	Name	Point Value	Tick Size	Tick Value	Exchange
6E	Euro FX	$125,000	0.00005	$6.25	CME
6B	British Pound	$62,500	0.0001	$6.25	CME
6J	Japanese Yen	$125,000	0.0000005	$6.25	CME
6A	Australian Dollar	$100,000	0.0001	$10.00	CME
6C	Canadian Dollar	$100,000	0.00005	$5.00	CME
6S	Swiss Franc	$125,000	0.0001	$12.50	CME

Micro Currency Futures

Symbol	Name	Point Value	Tick Size	Tick Value	Exchange
M6E	Micro Euro FX	$12,500	0.0001	$1.25	CME
M6B	Micro British Pound	$6,250	0.0001	$0.625	CME

Energy Futures

Crude oil, natural gas, and other energy products.

Symbol	Name	Point Value	Tick Size	Tick Value	Exchange
CL	Crude Oil (WTI)	$1,000	0.01	$10.00	NYMEX
QM	E-mini Crude Oil	$500	0.025	$12.50	NYMEX
MCL	Micro Crude Oil	$100	0.01	$1.00	NYMEX
NG	Natural Gas	$10,000	0.001	$10.00	NYMEX
QG	E-mini Natural Gas	$2,500	0.005	$12.50	NYMEX
RB	RBOB Gasoline	$42,000	0.0001	$4.20	NYMEX
HO	Heating Oil	$42,000	0.0001	$4.20	NYMEX

Metals Futures

Precious and industrial metals.

Precious Metals

Symbol	Name	Point Value	Tick Size	Tick Value	Exchange
GC	Gold	$100	0.10	$10.00	COMEX
MGC	Micro Gold	$10	0.10	$1.00	COMEX
SI	Silver	$5,000	0.005	$25.00	COMEX
SIL	Micro Silver	$1,000	0.005	$5.00	COMEX
PL	Platinum	$50	0.10	$5.00	NYMEX
PA	Palladium	$100	0.05	$5.00	NYMEX

Industrial Metals

Symbol	Name	Point Value	Tick Size	Tick Value	Exchange
HG	Copper	$25,000	0.0005	$12.50	COMEX
MHG	Micro Copper	$2,500	0.0005	$1.25	COMEX

Agricultural Futures

Grains, softs, and livestock.

Grains

Symbol	Name	Point Value	Tick Size	Tick Value	Exchange
ZC	Corn	$50	0.25	$12.50	CBOT
ZS	Soybeans	$50	0.25	$12.50	CBOT
ZW	Wheat	$50	0.25	$12.50	CBOT
ZM	Soybean Meal	$100	0.10	$10.00	CBOT
ZL	Soybean Oil	$600	0.01	$6.00	CBOT

Softs

Symbol	Name	Point Value	Tick Size	Tick Value	Exchange
KC	Coffee	$375	0.05	$18.75	ICE
SB	Sugar #11	$1,120	0.01	$11.20	ICE
CC	Cocoa	$10	1.00	$10.00	ICE
CT	Cotton	$500	0.01	$5.00	ICE

Livestock

Symbol	Name	Point Value	Tick Size	Tick Value	Exchange
LE	Live Cattle	$400	0.025	$10.00	CME
HE	Lean Hogs	$400	0.025	$10.00	CME
GF	Feeder Cattle	$500	0.025	$12.50	CME

Interest Rate Futures

Treasury bonds and notes, Eurodollar, and other interest rate products.

Symbol	Name	Point Value	Tick Size	Tick Value	Exchange
ZB	30-Year T-Bond	$1,000	1/32	$31.25	CBOT
ZN	10-Year T-Note	$1,000	1/64	$15.625	CBOT
ZF	5-Year T-Note	$1,000	1/128	$7.8125	CBOT
ZT	2-Year T-Note	$2,000	1/128	$15.625	CBOT
SR3	3-Month SOFR	$2,500	0.0025	$6.25	CME

Quick Reference: Most Popular Contracts

For day traders and algorithmic systems, these are the most commonly traded contracts:

Contract	Point Value	Why It's Popular
NQ (E-mini NASDAQ-100)	$20	High volatility, tech-heavy, excellent liquidity
ES (E-mini S&P 500)	$50	Most liquid futures contract in the world
MNQ (Micro NASDAQ-100)	$2	Perfect for small accounts, 1/10th of NQ
MES (Micro S&P 500)	$5	Perfect for small accounts, 1/10th of ES
CL (Crude Oil)	$1,000	High volatility, active during US session
GC (Gold)	$100	Safe-haven asset, trades nearly 24 hours

FUTALGO Systems

Our algorithmic trading systems focus on the most liquid equity index futures:

System	Instrument	Point Value	Contract Type
Systems 1-4, 6-7	NQ	$20	E-mini NASDAQ-100
System 5	ES	$50	E-mini S&P 500

For scaling with smaller accounts, the same systems can be applied to micro contracts (MNQ at $2/point, MES at $5/point) with proportionally smaller position sizes.

Important Notes

Point values are fixed - They don't change with price. A $20 point value means $20 profit/loss per point regardless of whether NQ is at 15,000 or 20,000.

Tick vs Point - A tick is the minimum price increment. For NQ, 1 point = 4 ticks (since tick size is 0.25). Point value refers to a full point move.

Contract months - Futures expire quarterly (March, June, September, December for equity indices). Make sure you're trading the active front-month contract.

Exchange hours - Most CME equity index futures trade nearly 24 hours (Sunday 6 PM - Friday 5 PM ET with a daily break).

Margin requirements - Vary by broker and are separate from point values. Day trading margins are typically much lower than overnight margins.

Data current as of November 2025. Always verify contract specifications with your broker or the exchange.

Futures Point Values Reference