To trade commodity futures well is not any easy task. Beware of anyone who tells you that it is.



An old commodity broker friend who was only half joking once told me that if you are thinking that it is a good idea to trade commodity futures you should have a nice glass of wine, go to bed, and take a long nap until the urge has disappeared. For most people who want to jump into the frenzied world of commodity trading that would be good advice.

However, for those who take the time to learn as much as they can about the commodity trading business before trading real money there is the possibility of starting out with a modest amount of risk capital and trading your way to a fortune. It is important to realize that you will be competing with some very smart, well informed individuals who will be pleased to take your money.

With that said it is also important to know that you will never have complete information about any market and that the outcome of any commodity trade can not be known for sure in advance. While it is important to know what you are doing you must be able to operate knowing that you will never know everything. If you are unable to pull the trading trigger when your trading system indicates a favorable trade is offered you had best give up commodity trading right now. Even tiny delays in executing trades can be fatal to your results.

You might be lucky for a little while trading against aggressive seasoned commodity traders but probably your luck will soon turn into financial grief. So beware. Don't be in too big of a hurry to start trading before you at least have put together a trading plan and have decided how much capital you are willing to put at risk.

There is another important item that you must decide upon before starting to trade commodity futures. You must choose a commodity brokerage firm to trade through. You may also wish to select a commodity broker although these Internet days you may decide to trade online in a self directed account using a trading platform provided by your brokerage firm. You must do your homework to insure that the brokerage firm that you are dealing with is not running a scam.

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) provides guidelines to help you in selecting a qualified brokerage firm. Prior to opening a commodity futures trading account you should visit the CFTC website. The CFTC will not assist you to make winning trades but they can help you with your commodity trading education which may very well help to get you started in the right way.