Forward price, delivery price and value of forward contract

Suppose time today is 0, and I enter into a contract to buy the underlying asset for K at maturity date T (I am in the long position of the contract). Recall that the payoff at maturity to my long position is S_{T}-K. Here, K is called the delivery price of the contract and must be fixed at the initiation of the contract.

  1. How should K be chosen?
  2. What is the value of my long position in the contract?
  3. What is the difference between the current forward price F_{0,T} and the delivery price K?

The answers to the above questions are related.

  • If K=F_{0,T}, then the value of my (long) position in the contract is 0. This is true by definition of the forward price; it is the delivery price such that it costs nothing (for both the buyer and the seller) to enter into the contract.
  • If K>F_{0,T}, then my payoff would be less than that in the 1st case since S_{T}-K < S_{T}-F_{0,T}. The positive difference is exactly K-F_{0,T}. Discounting it back to the present, this amount is exactly (K-F_{0,T})e^{-rT}. I should be compensated by this amount today for the lesser amount at maturity (compared to the 1st case). So I should receive (K-F_{0,T})e^{-rT} (positive cashflows) when entering into the position, so the value of this position is the negative of this amount, which is (F_{0,T}-K)e^{-rT}. This agrees with the formula in the lecture for the value of long forward contract.
  • If K<F_{0,T}, then my payoff would be more than that in the 1st case since S_{T}-K > S_{T}-F_{0,T}. The positive difference is exactly F_{0,T}-K. Discounting it back to the present, this amount is exactly (F_{0,T}-K)e^{-rT}. I should pay this amount to the seller today for the extra amount at maturity (compared to the 1st case). So I should pay (F_{0,T}-K)e^{-rT} (negative cashflows) when entering into the position, so the value of this position is the positive of this amount, which is (F_{0,T}-K)e^{-rT}. Again, this agrees with the formula in the lecture for the value of long forward contract.
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