Continuous Trading
Continuous Trading is a trading protocol or market practice that defines how participants communicate interest, obtain prices and complete transactions.
Continuous Trading is a trading protocol or market practice that defines how participants communicate interest, obtain prices and complete transactions.
How Continuous Trading works
Market design determines who can interact, what information is visible, how priority is assigned and when trades occur. Small differences in matching rules or transparency can produce meaningful differences in spreads, queue behavior and price discovery. Continuous Trading is best understood as part of the chain connecting trading interest to an observable transaction price. Its effect depends on the market's participant mix, transparency, liquidity and the rules governing interaction.
Why it matters in markets
Bond markets combine exchange-like electronic protocols with bilateral and dealer-intermediated structures. That makes venue design especially important when comparing Treasury, corporate-bond and derivatives liquidity. Understanding Continuous Trading helps distinguish a fundamental repricing from a move caused primarily by execution mechanics, inventory pressure or temporary scarcity of liquidity. That distinction is important when comparing yields, spreads or prices across instruments and venues.
How to interpret it
The concept should be read in context rather than as a standalone signal. Compare Continuous Trading with prevailing volatility, trade size, spreads, depth and the execution protocol in use. A change can reflect information, inventory management, market-design rules or simply the timing of a large order.
Limits and context
Microstructure measures are highly sensitive to market design and data quality. Public feeds may omit hidden interest, bilateral dealer negotiations or delayed reports, while definitions can vary across venues and jurisdictions. BondStats therefore treats Continuous Trading as a structural concept rather than a universal trading rule, and users should defer to the relevant venue, regulator or instrument documentation for binding definitions.
Independently written BondStats reference content. Venue rules, regulatory definitions and official instrument documentation remain authoritative where terminology differs across markets.