The forward market is the informal over-the-counter financial market by which contracts for future delivery are entered into.
[1][2] Commodities are also traded on forward markets.
Examples include agricultural products such as rice,[3] and energy futures, such as oil and natural gas.
[4][5] Transactions on a forward market are typically not standardized, and contracts are customised to the needs of the trading parties.
[6][7] In contrast, standardized forward contracts are called futures contracts and traded on a futures exchange.