noun
position; open interest; outstanding contract
Finance term for the amount of a security, commodity, or derivative that an investor or dealer holds, either owned (long) or owed (short). Also used for the total number of open contracts in a market.
建玉を決済するタイミングが難しい。
It's difficult to time the closing of a position.
先物市場の建玉が過去最高を更新した。
Open interest in the futures market hit a record high.
The loanword ポジション is more common in everyday investment talk, while 建玉 is a formal finance term used in brokerage statements and market reports.
Compound of 建 (たて, 'build' or 'establish') and 玉 (ぎょく, 'ball' or 'jewel'), likely from the idea of 'establishing a position' in trading. The exact historical derivation is uncertain.