Price discovery: Futures prices provide useful information on the price of the underlying asset (the current price of the underlying asset is called the spot price). A short-term futures price is sometimes used as a proxy for the spot price.
Options prices provide information about the volatility of the underlying security.
Risk management: An important use of derivatives is to control risk including removing certain types of risk from investment.
Market completeness: This means that all potential payoffs can be obtained by trading securities available in the market. The inclusion of derivatives in a market adds to the different risk/return combinations available.
Speculation: Speculation is taking on risk in pursuit of additional profit.
Trading efficiency: Investing in a derivative can be a more attractive alternative than investing in the underlying instrument. This might be a result of greater liquidity or lower transaction costs in the derivatives market.
Criticisms of derivative markets
An arbitrage is when it is possible to trade and generate a riskless profit, without needing to make a net investment in the security being arbitraged. This opportunity might occur if the same security was priced differently in different stock markets or derivatives were mispriced. The text assumes that there are no arbitrage opportunities (the no-arbitrage principle) since arbitrage opportunities will not exist in an efficient market.
Corporate Finance Homework Help | Finance Assignment Help | Finance course help | Finance Homework Help | Finance Online Help | Finance Problems Help | Finance Tutor | Help With Finance Homework | Online Tutoring
Assignment Writing Help
Engineering Assignment Services
Do My Assignment Help
Write My Essay Services