Whether the economy is hot or not, an investor can make money trading commodity options, regardless of the condition of the market. Briefly, a commodity option allows its owner to either sell or buy a commodity like corn or wheat at a future date. You will buy a so-called “put option” if you think the price of the commodity will go down and a “call option” if you think the price will rise. And never will you have to take possession of the commodity itself.
Trade commodity options through a brokerage company using the world's largest and busiest exchange, the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE). Before the CBOE opened in 1973, you were limited to things like stocks or bonds that were traded on exchanges like the New York Stock Exchange and other around the world.
Learn the difference between owning a commodity and having a commodity option. If you own an option, you have an instrument that will expire, unlike owning the commodity itself. . Also, there is no limit to the number of options that exist, unlike the finite nature of commodities.
Decide whether you think a commodity will sell for more or for less at some designated time in the future, then buy either a “put” or a “call” option. For example, you think that corn will cost more three months from now than it does now, so you will buy a “call” option on 100 bushels of corn which, in effect, locks in the cost of that commodity. Before the option expires, hopefully the price will go up, so your option will be worth more. Conversely, you will buy a “put” option if you think the price of the commodity will be less than it is today.
Pay a “premium” wherever you buy a commodity option. Let's say you purchase a “call” option on 100 bushels of corn, and the premium is $2 per bushel. You will pay $200 for the right to exercise your option until it expires. That is your only cost to purchase the option, except for whatever commission you had to pay to your brokerage company. Even if you choose not to exercise the option before it expires, your investment will be limited to the $200 premium plus commission.
Tips
For years, the preferred method of trading options was to use a live broker with a securities firm because you would receive all the research you would need to make a judgment. But with the advances made by online brokerage companies in being able to provide you with that information, more people are trading commodity options online than ever before and they are paying a fraction of the commissions they would otherwise pay to a live broker. Since you will have more trades than you would if you were simply buying stock, you will have more money in your account.
Tips
- For years, the preferred method of trading options was to use a live broker with a securities firm because you would receive all the research you would need to make a judgment. But with the advances made by online brokerage companies in being able to provide you with that information, more people are trading commodity options online than ever before and they are paying a fraction of the commissions they would otherwise pay to a live broker. Since you will have more trades than you would if you were simply buying stock, you will have more money in your account.
Writer Bio
Bill Herrfeldt specializes in finance, sports and the needs of retiring people, and has been published in the national edition of "Erickson Tribune," the "Washington Post" and the "Arizona Republic." He graduated from the University of Louisville.