1. The table lists three main categories of commodities -- Agriculture, Financial Instruments, and Natural Resources -- and subcategories within those categories. It groups contracts by futures and options within the categories and subcategories.
2. Exchange abbreviations are as follows:
American Commodity Exchange - ACE
AMEX Commodities Corporation - ACC
Chicago Board of Trade - CBT
Chicago Mercantile Exchange - CME
Chicago Rice & Cotton Exchange - CRCE
Coffee, Sugar & Cocoa Exchange - CSCE
COMEX Division of New York Mercantile Exchange - COMEX
Kansas City Board of Trade - KCBT
MidAmerica Commodity Exchange - MCE
Minneapolis Grain Exchange - MGE
New York Cotton Exchange - NYCE
New York Futures Exchange - NYFE
New York Mercantile Exchange - NYMEX
Philadelphia Board of Trade - PBOT
Pacific Commodity Exchange - PCE
Pacific Futures Exchange - PFE
Twin Cities Board of Trade - TCBT
MCE was previously named the Chicago Open Board of Trade. Its name was changed effective November 22, 1972. The Commodity Exchange, Inc., became a division of the NYMEX on July 20, 1994.
3. Most futures contracts are settled by physical delivery of the underlying commodity. An asterisk (*) next to the contract name means that the contract is settled in cash, based on a price calculated by an independent third party or through a formula specified in the contract terms. Almost all existing option contracts are options on futures, meaning that exercise results in the establishment of a position in the underlying futures contract; options that have the word ''physical'' after the contract name are options on physicals, meaning that they are settled by delivery of the actual commodity or via cash settlement. The letter (d) in the Notes column indicates that a designated contract is dormant; i.e., the contract has been designated for more than five years and has not traded in the past six months. A blank space in the Notes column indicates that the contract was traded this fiscal year and is not dormant. The letters (v) and (r) indicate that the contract is no longer legally in force because the designation has been vacated or revoked. ''Vacated'' contracts are contracts for which an exchange has requested that the designation be removed. ''Revoked'' contracts are contracts for which the Commission has rescinded an exchange's designation.
4. The ''designation date'' is the date on which the exchange was authorized to trade the contract (i.e., the exchange was ''designated'' as a ''contract market'' in that particular commodity by the CFTC or its predecessor agency). If an exchange was previously designated by the Secretary of Agriculture as a contract market in a commodity, and that designation was in effect on July 18, 1975, the Commission did not specifically designate them as such on July 18, 1975. Those designations continued in force and effect by virtue of Section 411 of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission Act of 1974. Prior to July 18, 1975, the commodities for which designation was granted by the Secretary of Agriculture were among the list of agricultural and animal product commodities explicitly set forth in Section 2(a)(1) of the Commodity Exchange Act. On July 18, 1975, the Commission gave contract market designation to many of the exchanges which traded in previously unregulated commodities, having given provisional contract market designations on April 18, 1975, and having extended such designations on May 5. The effect of the July 18, 1975, designations was to bring under federal regulation all commodities for which a futures contract was actively traded. Previously unregulated commodities, such as COMEX's mercury and rubber contracts, for which no contract market designations were granted on that date, were not permitted to continue trading after July 18, 1975.
5. The ''trading began'' column indicates, according to data supplied by the exchanges, when trading began in a commodity, that is, the date of the first recorded futures or option trading in the commodity. For many contracts, the contract terms have changed materially since the date when trading began. A blank space in this column means that, although approved by the Commission, the exchange has not listed the contract for trading as of the end of the current fiscal year.
6. The CRCE originally was the New Orleans Commodity Exchange (NOCE). On June 15, 1983, the NOCE ceased trading and liquidated all open commitments in all traded commodities. In September 1983, NOCE became the Chicago Rice and Cotton Exchange (CRCE). On November 8, 1991, when the MCE was designated in rough rice futures, all open positions in CRCE rough rice futures were transferred to the MCE and, at the same time, all five CRCE futures contract designations were vacated. On October 3, 1994, open positions in MCE rough rice futures were transferred to the CBT.
7. Contract amended June 21, 1983 to specify mandatory cash settlement in lieu of physical delivery.
8. Name changed from Sugar No. 10 to Sugar No. 12 and then, on July 1, 1985, from Sugar No. 12 to Sugar No. 14.
9. Name changed to boneless beef trimmings from boneless beef on April 21, 1977 when contract terms were amended to change the underlying commodity.
10. Contract amended December 20, 1990 to specify mandatory cash settlement in lieu of physical delivery.
11. Contract amended December 10, 1985 to specify mandatory cash settlement in lieu of physical delivery. On June 5, 1992, the basis of the cash settlement price was changed to a USDA price.
12. Contract amended October 25, 1995 to specify mandatory cash settlement, based on USDA price, in lieu of physical delivery. The contract name was also changed at that time, to lean hogs from live hogs, since the underlying commodity was changed to hog carcasses from live hogs.
13. On September 23, 1991, the CBT's Amex Major Market Index (MMI) contract was renamed the MMI Mini contract. The MMI Maxi contract was renamed the MMI contract at that time and subsequently, on September 17, 1993, delisted from the CBT.
14. The option on the Value Line Average Stock Index futures contract was amended to be the option on the Mini Value Line Average Stock Index futures contract on May 28, 1992.
15. Originally designated as the ''GNMA-CD'' contract, the name was later changed to ''GNMA II'' and then to ''GNMA.'' On April 19, 1988, this contract was renamed as ''Mortgage-Backed Future.''
16. The underlying instrument was changed from a three-year interest rate swap to a ten-year interest rate swap on September 4, 1992.
17. These contracts were vacated on April 6, 1993, concurrent with Commission approval of identical CBT contracts.
18. This contract was originally named the NYMEX Gulf Coast unleaded gasoline futures contract. It was renamed as Texas unleaded gasoline to distinguish it from another similar contract approved on February 11, 1992.
19. Contract size was reduced to 1 kilogram from 100 troy ounces, effective April 7, 1983. A 100-troy-ounce CBT gold futures contract was later approved on August 11, 1987.
20. Contract size was reduced to 1,000 from 5,000 troy ounces, effective March 16, 1981. A 5,000-troy-ounce CBT silver futures contract was later approved on August 11, 1987.
21. Contract specifications and name changed from ''Plywood'' to ''Western Plywood,'' effective April 20, 1981.
22. The underlying commodity is a sulfur dioxide emission allowance issued by the Environmental Protection Agency.