What are the salient features of a “Commodity Futures Contract”?

A commodity futures contract is a tradable standardized contract, the terms of which are set in advance by the commodity exchange organizing trading in it. The futures contract is for a specified variety of a commodity, known as the “basis” though quite a few other similar varieties, both inferior and superior, are allowed to be deliverable or tender able for delivery against the specified futures contract.
The quality parameters of the “basis” and the permissible tender able varieties; the delivery months and schedules; the places of delivery, the “on” and ”off” allowances for the quality differences and the transport costs; the transport costs; the tradable lots; the modes of price quotes; the procedures for regular periodical (mostly daily) clearings; the payment of prescribed clearing and margin monies; the transaction, clearing and other fees; the arbitration, survey and other dispute redressing methods; the manner of settlement of outstanding transactions after the last trading day, the penalties for non-issuance or non-acceptance of deliveries, etc. are all predetermined by the rules and regulations of the commodity exchange.
Consequently, the parties to the contract are required to negotiate only the quantity to be bought and sold and the price. Everything else is prescribed by the Exchange. Because of the standardized nature of the futures contract, it can be traded with ease at a moment’s notice.