Gold Futures Trade Through Weekend as Oil Contract Remains Blocked
CME Group's gold futures market launched on a continuous schedule over the weekend, trading nearly 15,000 contracts worth $60 million in notional value. This comes as the exchange expanded its offerings to include round-the-clock trading for various assets. In contrast, CME's crude oil contract was blocked by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) on July 9 due to concerns over self-certification.
The difference in treatment between gold and oil can be attributed to the underlying markets' characteristics, according to Adam Haeems, Head of Asset Management at Tesseract Group. He noted that continuous trading is more accepted where spot markets already operate continuously, whereas physical delivery is often involved in commodities like oil.
Other players in the market are also moving forward with their own plans for perpetual futures contracts. Kalshi filed an application with the CFTC on July 21 to list perpetual futures on gold, silver, and platinum, which would open on a 24/5 schedule matching the underlying metals markets.
The CFTC's review of these applications is ongoing, with some calling for greater clarity on what constitutes collateral when traditional payment rails are unavailable. Maxime Seiler, CEO and Co-Founder at STS Digital, noted that funding rates against storage costs can break perpetual contracts designed to replace expiries.