Changes to Commodity Trading and Commodity Markets Growth

By William Davies

Worldwide we now see commodity trading activity taking place on a range of modern, regulated commodity exchanges. A broad range of commodities are traded between end user buyers and producer sellers within a framework of standard contract rules and commodity trading regulations. In effect world commodity exchanges make buying and selling of raw commodities ranging from crude oil, copper and wheat to platinum and orange juice much easier.

Consider that a few commodities like crude oil and coffee have been traded for a very long time in mature markets, but now we see early 21st century markets innovating with different types of futures contracts being introduced. Among these more colourful types of commodity are carbon in the form of emission permits. With the rising anxiety about the serious environmental damage from climate change caused by greenhouse gases, a fast growing market has mushroomed in emissions permits, a form of activity known as carbon trading.

Going forward we can expect to see more growth in commodity market products which place a price on the environment, for example, new products in carbon emissions, plastics, water and even the weather.In fundamental terms, commodity trading is buying and selling of futures contracts which represent commodities. In the market, you may see the zinc producer hedging his future sales from a price drop or perhaps a food manufacturer hedging his cocoa purchases from a sudden price spike caused by crop failure.

The main actors in the commodity markets are the speculators who trade futures contracts for profit and their activity brings liquidity, while commodity end users and producers play a smaller role. In essence a futures contract is allows a trader to sell or buy a specified quantity of a particular commodity at an agreed future date, where price is subject to the forces of supply and demand when they contract is made.

Across the world time zones commodity traders are active in the markets either on the floor of the exchange, called open outcry, or using an electronic trading platform. Over recent years the volume of electronically traded futures contracts has increased markedly, as a number of exchanges have combined to form mega commodity exchanges.

Small retail speculators are now able to commit small amounts of capital to these global commodity markets due to ease of online access and use of real time data and online trading software availability. Some traders will prefer to focus on fundamentals like demand and supply of basic commodities to decide when to trade, while others tend to follow the price action of a commodity irrespective of sector, on the basis that technically analysis suggests it is offering significant opportunities for making profits.

With the opening up of the emerging market economies such as Brazil, Russia, India and China (or BRIC countries), we are likely to see a continuation of the growth in commodity markets in these nations. For example, Dalian Commodity Exchange in China has ambitious plans to develop beyond its current specialism in agricultural commodities, and move to industrial metals and more. While in the Middle East, Dubai is a growing financial centre and the Dubai Gold and Commodities Exchange has an interesting product range including WTI light, sweet crude oil, steel, plastics, gold and silver and the Indian Rupee.

We can all see how the global credit crunch had such a profound effect on economic growth, with significant corrections in rates of growth and sharp falls in demand for commodities, as major economies and companies were seriously affected, but despite this commodities as an asset class are not seriously affected. Looking ahead to the future, as economic growth picks up there will be a resumption in demand for key commodities like crude oil, aluminium, copper, iron ore and demand for softs like sugar and wheat will be buoyant with competing food and biodiesel demands. Going forward, the outlook for commodity trading will be positive and as an activity it will again be at the centre of world finance. - 23222

About the Author:

The author, William Davies, travels extensively across the globe, observes the exchanges and contributes to Commodity Trading Today, an informational and educational resource on commodities markets. Secure your free Commodity Trading Alerts and articles from the Commodity Universe Newsletter here.

Your Forex Education

By Bart Icles

Some people associate forex education with going to a special school so that they can know more about forex tips and techniques. Little do they know that forex education does not require you to be in a forex school. There are indeed online forex schools where you can receive forex education but before you decide to enlist yourself one, it can be helpful learn some basic forex lessons by yourself and later compare what you know with what these forex schools teach.

To get you started in your forex education, it is important that you have key information on what the forex market is, as well as its nature. The forex market is where you can trade currencies. And unlike other trading markets, the forex market is virtually open 24 hours a day. It is therefore relatively convenient to participate in forex trading because you have the option to trade at practically any time of the day. If you are used to staying up late at night, you can do your trading while the rest of the town sleeps. Or if you are an early bird, you can start trading currencies just as everyone else's day starts.

It is also helpful to know that the different kinds of forex market environment. The over the counter forex market is known to be most popular, and by far the biggest, market in the world today. It can be valuable to spend part of your forex education on the over the counter market as this can become your major trading field. One of the things you need to learn about this kind of forex market is the varying conditions of the trading environment. These conditions, along with the attractiveness of the rates and prices and reputation of the different traders, you will be able to determine the kind of people that traders would prefer having deals with.

Another important factor that you should consider in your forex education is the kind of people involved in different transactions. It helps to play close attention to other traders because you will need to develop some degree of trust when trading with them. You also need to remember that no one rushes your progress in your pursuit of learning more about the forex market. Rushing yourself can only bring in problems in the long run.

In thinking about your forex education, always bring quality and quantity to a balance. There is no point in knowing a lot about the technicalities of forex trading when you do not understand their significance in the actual trading arena. In the same manner, knowing so much about so little things will only slow you down. - 23222

About the Author:

A free forex education starts with a desire to learn and a drive to become a great trader. The best forex education takes dedication and a good teacher. But once you learn how to trade and do so successfully your life will change and you have options and financial resources you never had before.

Know Major Stock Indexes (Part II)

By Ahmad Hassam

Modified capitalization weighting involves adjustments to the capitalizations of the various component issues of the Nasdaq-100 index. The NDX contract at the CBOE is based on Nasdaq-100 as is the MNX. The Nasdaq-100 is a modified capitalization weighted index.

Russell 2000 is the well known benchmark for small capitalization sector. Several Russell Indexes have become benchmarks for specific areas of investment management. Frank Russell Company is one of the leading global investment consultants. It is also involved in performance measurement, analysis and investment management.

Russell 3000 Index as the name implies includes 3000 issues and these 3000 companies represent 98% of the investable US equities. The index is adjusted for certain factors such as cross holdings and the number of pairs in hands.

Russell 3000 is further split into subsets like Russell 1000 Index and it covers the top 1000 companies. It is about 92% of the value of the entire 3,000 stock index. The Russell 2000 Index is the smallest 2000 companies in the Russell 3000 Index. It represents about 8% of the value of Russell 3000.

From the business point of view, the Wall Street Journal is probably one of the most perfect business franchises. A franchise that is very hard to duplicate. The net worth of most of its readers is in seven figures. Dow Jones is the publisher of this journal.

DJIA became an important business barometer over the years. Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) comprising 12 smokestack companies made its debut in the year 1896 and it grew to encompass 30 large industrial companies.

The DJIA is still one of the worlds best known stock measures. It consists of 30 largest and most liquid blue chip stocks in the US. The average is maintained by the editors of the Wall Street Journal.

Recently Microsoft and Intel were added to the DJIA. The DJIA unlike the S&P 500, Nasdaq-100 or Russell 3000 Indexes is a price weighted average. The highest price issues hold the most influence over the average.

A 1% move in a $100 IBM stock would have a greater impact than a 1% move in a $40 Wal-Mart stock. ETFs exit on many Dow Indexes like the DJIA, the Dow Jones Total Market Index, the Dow Jones Global Titan Index and various sector indexes.

Wilshire flagship index is the Wilshire 5000 Total Market Index. Wilshire serves over 400 organizations in over 20 countries representing over $2 trillion in assets.

It has increased to 6500 issues over the years representing the increase in the number of companies in the US. It represents the broadest index for the United States equity market.

The Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI) database contains nearly 25,000 securities covering 50 countries. It calculates nearly 3,000 indexes daily and services a client base of over 1,200 worldwide. One of the advantages of MCSI and its foreign indexes is consistency. - 23222

About the Author:

Mr. Ahmad Hassam has done Masters from Harvard University. He is interested in day trading stocks and forex. Get good Forex Training. Learn Forex Trading!

Here Is How To Use Craigslist To Find Buyers

By Jesse C Davis

Finding buyers in today's real estate market is tough no matter what people say online and if you are one of the many investors who have been stuck with a deal trying to figure out how to sell them then you know what I am talking about. The hardest part of it all is financing for potential buyers right now in this crazy economy.

One technique I want to share with you is using Craigslist to find buyers and sell your house. If you have been in real estate investing for long and done anything online then you probably already know about Craigslist. The problem is there are a bunch of ways that are being taught online that are just wrong when it comes to using craigslist to sell your house or find buyers for your wholesale deals.

Many so called gurus teach you to basically spam people to get leads to sell or buy on Craigslist. This is really stupid and basically a waste of time. Craigslist is one of the greatest websites ever made in my opioon and I have mad a lot of money using it in my real estate business but you have to know how to use it or you will end up just wasting your time.

The proper way to do it is just go to your town on craigslist and look at all the listings and start reading them. When you read one that looks like or makes you think it is some one that buys and sells multiple houses and not just a home owner then respond to them and let them know that you have something to sell and give them the details on the deal. It's that easy.

The other key that many fail to do is post their ads every day in the their sections. Many say that you can't do that because of craigslist rules but if you think a little you can get around that, for a ethical way of doing it go to the link in the resource box and I will show you how. It makes a huge difference in the amount of leads you get. I guarantee it. - 23222

About the Author:

For more information on how to use the internet to find cash buyers for your deals and to start building a mssive monthly income in real estate this year you need to find more information about Jesse C Davis in jackson mississippi. His teaching rocks.

Info on FAP Turbo - Costs, Result, Risks, and Automation

By John Fapedosha

FAP Turbo Robot is an automatic Forex trading system for Metatrader4 that can actually trade for you automatically. Three IT programmers built the robot, and compared to the previous version called Forex Autopilot it is much improved.

There are many reasons why FAP Turbo has taken over the Forex market. The first is you can set it up and let it run on autopilot and that is really the only thing you need to do. By storing your data with a remote hosting service your computer does not have to be powered on constantly.

This robot has been proven with real live trading accounts, not just computer models. If you require assistance when installing the system, excellent video tutorials are included.

Once setup the program does not rest. This software will analyze the market 24 hours a day, Monday through Friday. Previous Forex experience is not needed, as you will only have to set it up following the simple directions. The customer service they provide is top-notch. A short turn around for all inquiries is provided by their team.

When comparing this type of software, there are some important factors that can be used to determine their profitability. The winning rate of the system is the number one determinant. For the last 9 years the FAP Turbo's winning rate has, on average been 95%, with higher success rates shown in live testing.

One other key element to consider is the draw down of the system. Draw down is the percentage that reveals what the biggest sum of money that FAP Turbo has lost during back testing. Draw downs of 10-20 percent are typical with Forex trading software. But FAP Turbo only has a draw down of 0.35%. That's zero point thirty-five percent which is an explanation for why the graphs on their site are so even and not constantly going up and down.

It is designed to find more profit opportunities than any other software out there, but also has tighter risk controls. You may purchase the software to test on a demo account, and if you are not satisfied with the results, there is a 60-day money-back guarantee. This robot is inexpensive and you can trade with an initial investment of only $50.00. - 23222

About the Author:

Before you waste a lot of time, visit us first at fap-turbo.us for more hints and tips on this automated FAP Turbo software robot.