Who calls it: a city's warmest month.
October 2026 was the 7th warmest October on record in Cincinnati, and the warmest on record at CVG airport (per meteorologist Scott Dimmich).
One place, two records: NOAA's ACIS "Cincinnati Area" thread runs from 1872 and joins older sites; the airport station's own record starts in 1947.
A contract on a monthly record has to name the station or the thread.
Source: https://threadex.rcc-acis.org
Who calls it: retail sales.
The Census Bureau's advance estimate rests on a subsample of about 4,800 firms. Its 15 October release revised the July to August change from up 1.1 percent to up 1.3 percent, and an annual revision landed on 28 September.
A contract on the advance print has to say which version settles it: the first estimate, the next month's revision, or the annual one.
Next release: 17 November, 8:30 a.m. (Census calendar).
Who calls it: a temperature record.
Copernicus ranked September 2026 the second-warmest September in ERA5 (12 Oct bulletin).
ERA5 updates daily, about 5 days behind. That early release, ERA5T, can differ from the final one 2 to 3 months later.
So a contract on a monthly record has to say which counts: the bulletin as published, ERA5T on a set date, or final ERA5.
Source: https://climate.copernicus.eu/climate-bulletins (fetched 31 Oct)
Who calls it: housing starts.
Census's release page notes two cases a settlement rule must handle. Its 9 Jan 2026 release also carried the prior month's first estimates, so two months got a first print on one day. On 19 Feb 2025, corrected tables replaced ones posted earlier that day.
So "the first estimate" needs a release date, sometimes a time. Which version would you hold a contract to?
Next release: 18 Nov, 8:30 a.m.
Sources: https://www.census.gov/construction/nrc/index.html https://www.census.gov/economic-indicators/calendar-listview-2026.html
Who calls it: the PCE price index.
BEA published the September figures on 29 October in its Personal Income and Outlays release. The next release, for October, is due 25 November at 8:30 a.m. ET (5:30 a.m. PT).
Each release can revise earlier months, so a contract that settles on the September figure has to say which print counts: the first one, or the latest revision.
Source: https://www.bea.gov/data/personal-consumption-expenditures-price-index (fetched 30 Oct)
Who calls it: which GDP print counts.
BEA published its advance estimate for Q3 today. The second estimate is due on 25 November, and a third follows.
The prints can move. For Q2, real GDP growth was 1.5 percent in the advance estimate, 1.5 in the second and 2.2 in the third.
Anything settled on GDP should say which estimate counts, and what happens if a release is late.
Sources: BEA, Q3 2026 advance estimate and Q2 2026 third estimate, fetched 29 October. https://www.bea.gov/news/2026/gdp-advance-estimate-3rd-quarter-2026
Who calls it: GDP week.
The Bureau of Economic Analysis publishes its advance estimate of Q3 2026 GDP on Thursday 29 October at 8:30 a.m. ET (5:30 a.m. PT). Its schedule then lists a second estimate on 25 November and a third on 23 December.
Three published figures for one quarter. A contract on Q3 growth should name which estimate it settles on, and say what happens if the release is delayed.
Source: BEA news release schedule, fetched 27 October. https://www.bea.gov/news/schedule
Who calls it: Fed week.
The FOMC meets on 27 and 28 October. On the Fed's own meeting calendar, each meeting carries two documents: the statement and the implementation note. The statement records the decision on the target range. The implementation note sets out the operational details.
A contract on the decision should name which document it settles on, and say what happens if release is late.
Source: Federal Reserve, FOMC meeting calendars, fetched 26 October. https://www.federalreserve.gov/monetarypolicy/fomccalendars.htm