DAILY AVERAGE

Used to describe typical trading activity for a day. For example, daily average volume over a year is calculated by the annual volume divided by the total number of working days in that year.

DATA VENDORS

Organisations who disseminate real-time market information.

DAY ORDERS

Orders which automatically expire at the close of the day's trading if not filled during the day on which they are received.

DAY TRADING

Establishing and liquidating the same futures market position within one day.

DEFAULT

Failure to perform on a futures contract as required by Exchange rules, such as failure to meet a margin call, or to make or take delivery.

DELIVERABLE TYPES

These refer to the actual types or grades of physical commodity which may be delivered under Exchange rules in settlement of a futures contract.

DELIVERY

The tender and receipt of the actual commodity, or warehouse receipts covering such commodity, in settlement of a futures contract. Note that in some commodities no delivery provision exists as settlement is made in cash.

DELIVERY MONTH

A specified month during which actual delivery of the commodity may be made under terms of a futures contract. Each futures contract must state the month of delivery. Current delivery means delivery during the current month. Note that in some commodities no delivery provision exists as settlement is made in cash.

DELTA

The change in the value of the option premium relative to the change in the value of the underlying future, expressed as a coefficient.

DEPOSIT

See initial margin.

DIFFERENTIALS

The discounts allowed for grades of a commodity lower than the futures basic grade, and also the premiums paid for grades better than the futures basic grade.

DISCOUNT

(1) The amount a price would be reduced to purchase a commodity of lesser grade;
(2) Sometimes used to refer to the price differences between futures of different delivery months, as in the phrase "July at the discount to May", indicating that the price of the July future is lower than that of May; see Premium.

DISCRETIONARY ACCOUNT

A trading account over which the client gives a broker authority to effect transactions in futures contracts or options without prior reference to or approval of that client.