Skip to content
GetProfitable
Search
Dictionary

ZF (5-year Treasury note futures)

The CBOT contract on Treasury notes of roughly four years and two months to five years and three months, $100,000 face, quoted in quarter-32nds.

The five-year point is where Federal Reserve policy expectations and longer-term growth views meet, which makes ZF the belly of the curve and a favourite leg of futures-butterfly trades against zt and zn.

Its finer tick — a quarter of a 32nd, $7.8125 — reflects lower price volatility per contract than the longer maturities, though the notional is the same $100,000.

Example: ZF at 107'2225 is 107 + 22.25/32 = 107.695, so $107,695. DV01 around $42 means a 10-basis-point move is roughly $420 per contract, about a third of what the same move is worth in zb.

Related: treasury-futures, zt, zn, futures-butterfly, dv01

Educational only, not advice. Spotted an error? Post in Site Feedback.