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Volker Knapp wrote:
>We just launched futures with Wealth-Lab Developer 2. How do you mean
>handling correcty contracts. It has never been easier to include any data.
I think he means that he would like to see Wealth Lab maintain a
database of all the different futures contracts specifications.
So when you import futures data, Wealth-Lab would automatically
know that each point is worth $50 per contract if it's E-Mini,
$200/contract if it's S&P futures, $100/contract if it's gold, and
so on. It would also have to know that the margin requirements per
contract are $4000 for E-Mini and $750 for Wheat and $2800 for Gold,
for example. This is a critical feature, *especially* when testing
a portfolio of futures, all having different point values and margin
requirements.
Also, different futures contract markets open and close at different
times. Some markets are open from 9:00 to 16:00, some are open
from 11:00 to 14:00, some are open wierd hours like 10:13 to 15:04
or something. Wealth-Lab should maintain a database of this
information. This is also a critical feature, especially for
real-time intraday trading.
Different contracts also have different expiration times, not always
the 3rd Friday of the month like equity options. Contracts have a
"First Notice Day" and a "Last Trading Day." Position traders should
not be trading a contract after its First Notice Day.
Another thing: Wealth-Lab should know how to expect futures
contracts to be quoted in a live data stream. Wheat, for example,
is often quoted in 1/8 points, so a number like 1246 would be 124
3/4. T-Bonds and T-Notes are quoted in 1/64 points, so 12332 would
be 123 1/2. Many other contracts are decimal.
It's unlikely that Wealth-Lab is practical for futures analysis or
trading if it doesn't have those capabilities. I must say it's nice
to see the developers here listening to criticism. Hope mine was
constructive.
--
,|___ Alex Matulich -- alex@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
// +__> Director of Research and Development
// \
//___) Unicorn Research Corporation -- http://unicorn.us.com
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