The value of a futures contract is zero when the account is marked-to-market and there is no margin call. The price of the contract is adjusted to the new ‘no-arbitrage’value, which is theoretically the same as the settle price at the end of trading, as long as price change limits have not been reached. Note that this is different from a forward contract. With a forward contract, the forward price is fixed for the life of the contract so the contract may accumulate either a positive or negative value as the forward price for new contracts changes over the life of the contract. |
