I have a reasonable handle on the fundamentals of bonds, but I am not sure what the main numbers are to track, or the major plays that people make. Perhaps someone experienced in U.S. interest rate futures trading could help me with the following: (1) What are the major numbers (in order of importance) you look at when placing long or short directional trades on the 10yr? (eg: 10yr on-the-run cash yield, CBOT futures contract price, 10 over 2 spread) (i.e. in analogy to S&P there is the futures price, cash index, tick, etc) (2) What are the MAJOR plays in interest rate trading? (eg: 10yr directional, yield curve 10 vs 2,etc) (3) Is appears the 10-2 spread is the most widely followed yield curve play? Is there a particular conventional numerical index for the 10-2 spread that people watch/reference? (if so, does anyone know the esignal code?) (4) On bloomberg TV the cash YIELD seems to be THE number vs the futures PRICE? Is the cash yield the 'go to' number to track movements or is it a combination? (5) If there are any current or former pit traders out there what were the three big numbers or items you tracked/referenced while trading? Thanks in advance, Paperclip