Open interest
The total number of derivative contracts that are open and not yet closed or settled.
Open interest counts the outstanding contracts in a derivatives market at a point in time. Each new position opened by a buyer and seller adds one contract, and each position closed removes one. Unlike volume, which counts all trades in a period, open interest measures positions still carried.
On our site, open interest is shown with its change over the period. Rising open interest alongside rising prices suggests new positions, mostly long, are entering. Rising open interest alongside falling prices suggests new shorts. Falling open interest during a move often means positions are being closed rather than added.
Traders use it to judge how much leverage sits in a market. High open interest relative to spot liquidity can make liquidation cascades more likely.
Worked example (illustrative numbers, not real data): open interest rises from 10,000 to 12,000 contracts over three days while price climbs 5 percent. Two thousand contracts were opened on net, so new positions, not just closures, are behind the move.