Commodities Now Glossary

OCM - On-the-day commodity market (OCM)... part of the new gas trading arrangements introduced in the UK, OCM is a screen-based, within-day gas market that allows shippers to fine-tune their daily gas positions.

Mercado de Electricidad (OMEL) - Operador del Mercado Iberico de la Energia, polo espanol S.A (OMEL) is a Spanish company created with the purpose of managing markets in underlying energy assets. As its main function, OMEL is the responsible of the management of the Iberian spot electricity market, running everyday the daily and six intraday markets encompassing all Iberian energy. In addition to this principal function, OMEL is responsible for the management of several energy related product auctions, including both physical and financial products.

Open interest - 
The total number of futures or options contracts of a given commodity that have not yet been offset by an opposite futures or option transaction nor fulfilled by delivery of the commodity or option exercise. Each open transaction has a buyer and a seller, but for calculation of open interest, only one side of the contract is counted

Open outcry - 
Method of public auction for making verbal bids and offers in the trading pits or rings of futures exchanges.

Opening range - 
A range of prices at which buy and sell transactions took place during the opening of the market.

OpenLink - A leading developer of cross-asset trading, risk management, and related operational and portfolio management software. Headquartered on Long Island, New York, and with offices in New York City, Houston, London, Berlin, Vienna, São Paulo, Sydney, Canada, Moscow,and Singapore, OpenLink is a leading provider of ETRM / CTRM solutions for power, gas, utilities, refiners, producers, and commodity traders.

Operador del Mercado Ibérico de la Energía polo español S.A. (OMEL) is a Spanish company created with the purpose of managing markets in underlying energy assets. As its main function, OMEL is the responsible of the management of the Iberian spot electricity market, running everyday the daily and six intraday markets encompassing all Iberian energy. In addition to this principal function, OMEL is responsible for the management of several energy-related product auctions, including both physical and financial products.

Option buyer - 
The purchaser of either a call or put option. Option buyers receive the right, but not the obligation, to assume a futures position. Also referred to as the holder.

Option premium - 
The price of an option the sum of money that the option buyer pays and the option seller receives for the rights granted by the option.

Option seller - 
The person who sells an option in return for a premium and is obligated to perform when the holder exercises his right under the option contract. Also referred to as the writer.

Option spread - 
The simultaneous purchase and sale of one or more options contracts, futures, and/or cash positions.

Option writer - 
The person who sells an option in return for a premium and is obligated to perform when the holder exercises his right under the option contract. Also referred to as the option Seller.

Organic Exchange - Organic Exchange is a 501(C)(3) charitable organization committed to expanding organic agriculture, with a specific focus on increasing the production and use of organically grown fibers such as cotton.

Our long term goal is to grow the amount of certified organic land farmed for fiber production by 50% per year. Achieving this goal will allow us to have a positive, significant, visible and measurable impact on the world.

Original margin - 
The amount a futures market participant must deposit into his margin account at the time he places an order to buy or sell a futures contract. Also referred to as initial margin.

OTC Global Holdings - Formed in 2007 and co-headquartered in Houston and New York, OTC Global Holdings is the leading independent inter-dealer broker in over-the-counter energy commodities, with dominant market share in U.S. and Canadian natural gas markets and the Texas power market.

Out-of-the-money option - 
An option with no intrinsic value, i.e., a call whose strike price is above the current futures price or a put whose strike price is below the current futures price.