Commodities Basics
By Chuck Kowalski, About.com Guide
This is where you want to begin your education of commodities. It is important to learn the types of commodities that trade on the futures exchanges and the contract specifications of each commodity. From there, you can learn more about reading futures quotes and charts in order to track the commodity markets.
What Are Commodities?
First, start by getting a good understanding of what a commodity is and why people would invest in commodities.
- Introduction to Commodities and Futures
- Futures Contracts and Specifications
- Where Do Commodities Trade?
- How are Commodities and Futures Contract Different?
- Understanding Futures Margin
Types of Futures Orders
Before you can begin trading commodity futures, it is necessary to learn the different types of orders you can place. Some futures orders are very simple to use for entering and exiting the markets, while others can be used to help control your risk.
Understanding More About the Commodity Markets
You'll probably want to know what makes commodity prices move after you have learned what a commodity is. There are a variety of factors that influence the prices of commodities, but you will likely get a greater education by following commodity futures prices on a daily basis.