A futures contract, or simply “future,” is a financial agreement between two parties to buy or sell an asset at a specific price and date in the future. Futures contracts are standardized in terms of the quality and quantity of the underlying asset being traded, and they are traded on futures exchanges. Futures can be used for speculative purposes, as a way to hedge risk, or as a means of taking physical delivery of the underlying asset. Futures are commonly traded in a wide range of asset classes, including commodities, currencies, stocks, and bonds.