A futures contract is really only a forward traded on an exchange.
But so many renminbi are now circulating offshore that spot and forward trading have expanded rapidly in Hong Kong and Singapore, posing a challenge for Chinese regulators.
The Steelers were prepared to move forward, trading for Byron Leftwich on Tuesday, a decision Rooney said was in anticipation of not having Roethlisberger available for several games.
However, if this regime had been introduced in January, then as the dollar rose against the other currencies the yuan would have fallen against the dollar which would hardly have pleased America's Congress.China also announced this week a further liberalisation of foreign-exchange trading, allowing non-banks to trade in the spot market and more banks to conduct forward trading.
Derivative and forward trades, where banks are especially strong, are mainly by voice, but spot trades are largely electronic: one online trading platform, a big interbank system called EBS, specialising in euro-dollar and yen-dollar pairs, processes an average of $100 billion a day.
Back in Philadelphia, of the players anticipated to go high in the mock drafts, Hermann Trophy winner Patrick Mullins dropped to number 11, where New England took the chance to pick up another young forward, trading up one place with Colorado when Mullins was surprisingly still on the board.
But he will have to contend with the notion that forward trading encourages unbridled speculation and leads to inflation.
Facing the media on Monday, the Oklahoma City small forward traded his usual amiability for verbal acidity when reporters brought up Bryant's retirement.
Freer markets all round, not more protection, is a better way forward for trade.
Tickets for the canceled show are being honored by the Dunkin' Donuts Center and a handful of fans have so far come forward to trade them in.
