Consider the following listing for 10-year Treasury note futures on the Chicago Board of Trade. One futures contract for Treasury notes = $100,000 face value of 10-year 6% notes.
a. If on this day you bought two contracts expiring in December 2012, how much would you have paid?
b. What is meant by the "OpenInt" on a futures contract? What was the OpenInt on the contract expiring in March 2013?
c. If you were a speculator who expected interest rates to fall, would you have bought or sold these futures contracts? Briefly explain.
d. Suppose you sell the December futures contract, and one day later the Chicago Board of Trade informs you that it has credited funds to your margin account. What happened to interest rates during that day? Briefly explain.