Why Is My Cocoa Price Different? December, March and CFD Quotes Explained
6 min read · Public
Different cocoa quotes can all be valid. Learn to compare contract months, timestamps, bid and ask prices, continuous charts and CFDs before interpreting a move.
Two screens can show different cocoa prices without either being wrong. Before interpreting the gap as a trading opportunity, establish whether they show the same instrument, delivery month, currency, timestamp and price type.
This is especially useful during a sharp sell-off or a contract change. A newspaper may describe yesterday's December futures session while a broker displays a later delivery month today. Comparing those numbers directly mixes two separate differences: the movement through time and the difference between contracts.
The quick answer: identify the quote first
Quote checklist
VISUAL EXPLAINER · ILLUSTRATION
Compare like with like before comparing prices
01ContractSame delivery month?
December and March are separate contracts.
02TimeSame timestamp?
Delayed, live and closing observations differ.
03QuoteSame price type?
Last trade, settlement, bid and ask answer different questions.
A difference between screens is not, by itself, a market move or a trading opportunity.
ICE U.S. cocoa futures are quoted in US dollars per metric tonne, with a ten-tonne contract. The listed delivery months include March, May, July, September and December. Those months are separate contracts, not different labels for an identical trade.
A CFD is a broker contract whose pricing, size, financing and expiry arrangements must be checked in that broker's specification. Its displayed name alone does not establish that it is identical to the exchange contract. A continuous chart, meanwhile, is a data series assembled from successive contracts; the chart itself is not a position in your account.
Use the contract specification ↗ to identify the exchange product, then the broker's instrument information to identify what you actually hold. Our one lot of cocoa guide explains why position sizes also need matching.
A worked example of two different months
Imagine simultaneous, invented quotes of $5,000 per tonne for December and $5,120 for March. The later contract is $120 higher. That is a calendar price difference, not evidence that cocoa rose $120 within seconds.
Illustrative screen
Quote
Meaning
December futures
$5,000 per tonne
Price of the earlier contract
March futures
$5,120 per tonne
Price of the later contract
March minus December
+$120 per tonne
Difference between delivery months
March next observation
$5,090 per tonne
A $30 fall in March from its own earlier quote
A chart switching from December at $5,000 to March at $5,120 can show an upward step even if neither contract rallied. If March subsequently trades at $5,090, it has fallen $30 against its own earlier observation; comparing $5,090 with December's $5,000 produces a misleading account of that move.
Keep the same contract on both sides of a daily percentage calculation. The contango guide explains what the relationship between the two months can reveal.
Last price, settlement, bid and ask
A last-traded price records a transaction. A bid is a quoted buying price and an ask is a quoted selling price. A settlement is an exchange-calculated reference under its methodology. These observations can differ even on the same contract.
For an invented bid of 4,998 and ask of 5,002, buying and immediately selling at those prices produces a four-point difference before other costs. A chart showing 5,000 does not promise that either side is executable at 5,000.
This matters when checking stops, entries and a broker's reported profit or loss. Establish which side of the quote triggers the order under the platform's terms. Do not compare a chart's mid-price with an executed fill and automatically conclude that the execution is incorrect.
Why the daily percentage can also differ
The percentage return depends on the reference price as well as the latest price. Suppose a quote is 5,100. Against 5,200 it is down about 1.92%; against 5,150 it is down about 0.97%. Both calculations are arithmetically correct but answer different questions.
Differences in settlement conventions, session boundaries, timestamps or contract selection can produce that situation. Record the comparison basis rather than selecting whichever percentage best fits a bullish or bearish story.
Publication dates create another trap. A report posted on Tuesday can describe Monday's market. Read the session date inside the report and preserve the time zone. A delayed quotation is not a live executable price.
Continuous charts and historical levels
Data providers can join contract histories using different roll dates and adjustment methods. Some preserve the price gap; others adjust older values to reduce the discontinuity. Adjusted history can therefore be useful for studying a broad trend while being unsuitable for recovering an exact historical fill.
Before drawing support from a distant candle, check whether its value belongs to the current contract, a previous contract or an adjusted series. Do not transfer a level unchanged between December and March simply because the charts look similar.
For a reviewable analysis, save the symbol, delivery month, chart adjustment setting, session and source. The support and resistance guide shows how to label a specific contract's levels.
What a rollover does to your account
Closing an old contract and opening a new one creates separate executions. Calculate each leg from its own entry and exit, then incorporate costs and any applicable broker adjustments. The price gap alone is not your realised gain or loss.
For example, an invented December long entered at 5,050 and closed at 5,000 loses $500 for one ten-tonne futures contract before costs. Opening March at 5,120 does not erase that loss or create another immediate $1,200 loss solely because March is higher.
If March later closes at 5,150, that second leg gains $300 before costs. Combined gross P&L is minus $200. Broker CFDs may implement expiry differently; use the rollover calculator only with the correct product multiplier and actual executions.
A practical quote checklist
Match New York or London, then the delivery month.
Match currency and unit before comparing magnitudes.
Record the timestamp, time zone and delay.
Identify last, settlement, bid, ask or midpoint.
Check the previous-price basis used for the daily change.
Read the broker's contract and expiry terms.
Keep execution records separate from a continuous chart.
Common questions
Does a higher March price mean cocoa is forecast to rise?
Not necessarily. A futures curve incorporates more than a simple forecast of the future spot price. Carrying costs, availability and market expectations can all matter.
Can I use a London chart to place a New York stop?
Not by copying the number. These are different markets with different currencies and contract terms. Even a currency conversion does not eliminate every difference.
Does an adjusted chart mean my old trade has changed?
No. A chart transformation does not rewrite the execution record. Account results depend on the product terms and transactions.
Additional reading context
Published 10 November 2026. All worked prices in this article are invented teaching examples, not live quotations. Contract specifications were checked against ICE; CME's rollover explanation ↗ supplies general futures background, not broker-specific instructions.
Published research and personal commentary, not personalised investment advice. Trade ideas can fail; evaluate the assumptions and dated follow-ups. The original published post is preserved.