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[JRS]

Ok... BD325C (Bruce) - you've got my curiosity piqued.

Please explain to me:

1. How does on go about Commodity Trading?
2. Is there any special licensing involved?
3. The words (acronym) CBOT comes to mind. Do I have to have/know someone who has a seat ?
4. What's the average/minimum 'wager' ? For example, $1000 starts an E*Trade/AmerTtrade account.
5. Times ? 8am to 3pm (CST) ?
6. Are corporations involved such as ConAgra, Tyson, etc ? (or was that a stoopid question?).

Thanks,
JRS

[BD325ic]

JRS,

Most Stock Brokers can also handle Commodity/Option orders. I'm a Technical Trader, I don't care about any government reports or fundamental news. I simply watch the charts for certain indicators.

No license is required, just a margin account and a Broker. You receive a Form-1099 from the Brokerage each year to include with you taxes. There is supposed to be a tax difference between a Commodity Investor and a Commodity Trader but I've been too lazy to find out.

CBOT, (Chicago Board of Trade), one of the largest Exchanges, there are several others.

I started with $10,000 however there are some Brokerages that require you to only deposit enough to cover the market you want to trade. I.e., if you traded Canola contracts, that would be $120 at current margin requirements. The Nasdaq and S&P have much, much higher margin requirements, in another words, margin requirements vary by market. The typical margin of the markets I trade are between $800 and $2200. Most of the options I purchase are less than $500, I search for bargains each day.

The exchanges and individual markets trade during different hours. The exhanges are located in Illinois and New York. I do my trading and enter my orders in the evening, after the markets have closed. It typically takes me about an 45 minutes each day to trade.

No corporations are involved, it is simply the Speculator buying or selling to an unknown entity.

Just one of the markets, (Eurodollars) is larger than the entire NYSE, the Commodity markets are huge, or extremely liquid.

I also respect anyone who is willing to take a risk and increase their personal wealth. No risk, no reward! It takes time but getting over the hump where you no longer work for money but instead have your money work for you is a milestone everyone should be reaching for.

Our kids, (10 & 11) paper-trade, we make them. We've also made them read Rich Dad/Poor Dad and the Millionairre Next Door. They're going to get a financial education, something they don't teach in college. I don't want them to have Jobs, I want them to be financially independant. When they're 18, they get to make their own decision on which direction they'll take but at least they'll have the knowledge.

I choose Commodities over Stocks because if I control wheat contracts, that's something thats consumable and will always be in demand. I admire anyone who makes money in the Stock Markets.

Hopefully I've answered your questions, good luck with your trading.

Bruce
95 325ic

[ 01-25-2004: Message edited by: BD325ic ]

[JRS]

quote:

---

Originally posted by BD325ic:
...(snip)... I also respect anyone who is willing to take a risk and increase their personal wealth. No risk, no reward! It takes time but getting over the hump where you no longer work for money but instead have your money work for you is a milestone everyone should be reaching for.

Our kids, (10 & 11) paper-trade, we make them. We've also made them read Rich Dad/Poor Dad and the Millionairre Next Door. They're going to get a financial education, something they don't teach in college. I don't want them to have Jobs, I want them to be financially independant. When they're 18, they get to make their own decision on which direction they'll take but at least they'll have the knowledge.

I choose Commodities over Stocks because if I control wheat contracts, that's something thats consumable and will always be in demand. I admire anyone who makes money in the Stock Markets.

Hopefully I've answered your questions, good luck with your trading.

---

Bruce, I see we share the 'same vision' for our offspring. I happy to hear that I'm not the only one. Everyone is worried and preparing their kids to be 'something' (e.g. A doctor, a mechanic, a pharmacist, etc.). What I'd like my kids to do is to be whatever they want to be but not be 'tied' because of the salary. Who doesn't want to be a Rockefeller ?
I chose the Stock Market because it's what my Dad taught us when we were in High School. I just didn't start 'listening' until the late 1990's. I just graduated High School when my BMW E30 was made (that should give you a hindsight on my age).
I'd like to learn more about Forex Hedging, Options, and Commodities trading.
Nice - 'work' 45 minutes and earn a day's pay. That's the way life should be. The remaining 23 hours and 15 minutes is 'all yours'.

Best of luck to you and thanks for responding.

JRS

[Greenhornet84]

Bruce,
thr Ken Roberts homepageis down for repairs? Ant other places to look forinfo on this?
Mark

[BD325ic]

Mark/JRS,

The Ken Roberts Company has an 800 number, call them and ask for some free literature.

Another thing, trading in Commodities is not a get rich quick scheme. I started slowly and consistently added to my account.

It will take some work in developing a plan and then paper-trading that plan until it makes you money. Then you can open a margin account with real money. It took me about six months but the most important thing was that I saw the opportunity and knew it was real.

My trading plan is so simple that our kids follow it.

Good luck!

Bruce
95 325ic

[dale]

repeat:

Re the Ken Roberts referrals above, I just did a quick google and found these: http://www.turtletrader.com/kenroberts-trading.html http://www.turtletrader.com/forbes.html
I'm sure commodity trading can be very successful, but it doesn't sound like Ken Roberts teaches a winning formula.

If you have data or experence counter to those articles I'd love to hear about it.

Dale
=================
Wanted to post a followup to this, just found that they are selling a class for $999, so Roberts is a competitor of theirs.
When I posted the above I didn't realize they were a for-profit organization, I thought they were just an information site.
I don't recommend them as I have no knowledge of whether or not their system works, but it does sound intriguing.
Dale

[ 01-26-2004: Message edited by: dale ]

[BD325ic]

Don't spend a $1,000 before taking a low cost program. Get some basics first

This is what I wrote above, by no means does your education stop there.

"Ken Roberts explains the process in a simple manner, his course is BASIC but it got me hooked."

To many experts explain the markets in such a complex way that most beginners won't go any further. Ken Roberts does an excellent job of educating you on the basics. I'll always be indebted to him and recommend his course because without it I would not have gotten started.

Turtle Trading, "Long Term Position Trading", "Trade the Trend". I've read it'a an excellent course, if my current plan was not sucessful, I would have moved on to something else, possibly this. From what I can tell, their methods require a larger margin account and they're better suited to institutional trading, (i.e. Banks, Insurance Firms, Fund Managers), not so much for the beginner even though they claim otherwise.

Either way, don't be so quick to dismiss something just because you read an opposing opinion on a website. I encourage anyone that will listen to at least check out Commodities/Options as an investment vehicle. It works for me and my methods are simple.

Bruce
95 325ic

[Greenhornet84]

At $999 for a class you don't have to wonder who's making money.
Mark

[JRS]

quote:

---

Originally posted by Greenhornet84:
At $999 for a class you don't have to wonder who's making money.
Mark

---

If it costs $10,000 to learn how to make $1,000,000.00 would you sign up for the class ?

I see people standing in long lines at the gas station eager to spend $100 on hopes of winning that $80M prize. The odds are totally against them yet they stand in line. If they took that $100 and put it towards - Real Estate classes, Stock Market 101, Commodities 101 - they would have a better understanding of how to make a better life for themselves.

Put in a 'car analogy': $1,100 for a full set of Eibach springs and Bilstein HD shocks for a 16-year old E30 (Avg NADA value: $2,000). We all know who's winning.

Would that be a similar statement ?

No offense intended towards anyone. I've always been brought up to know that an investment in some sort of education is always a good investment. If I pay you and you teach me and I learn... then the cost was justified.

No?

JRS

[dale]

JRS: If I think a class or course or seminar has value, and have a 10x or even 3x return on the investment, I would certainly make the investment. I'm just very skeptical knowing that the majority of infomercials are hyping crap.

My brother is an active trader, and when I asked him about this, he pointed me to the information on the Turtle Rules, which are freely published on another website:
http://www.originalturtles.org/docs/turtlerules.pdf

Dale

[JRS]

quote:

---

Originally posted by dale:
JRS: If I think a class or course or seminar has value, and have a 10x or even 3x return on the investment, I would certainly make the investment. I'm just very skeptical knowing that the majority of infomercials are hyping crap.

---

Dale, I agree. Check it out before you 'dive in'. That's what your E30 forum folks do - - they find a "great car" and then they post the figures where everyone can see if it is a great car. People who were burned by a 'great car' sale give great advice. People who know what to look for also give great advice. People who work for the dealer (or perhaps are the Dealer) will give biased advice. It's the old "Buyer Beware" comment.

We're both on the same page here.

It's like buying a used BMW. Some are great and some are not. It's the pre-sale investigation that ultimately lands a great-one. But the key is to not get all involved with the hype.

JRS

[k1hb]

bruce: the rogers website sells two pkgs

which one brought u up to snuff?

fred

[BD325ic]

Fred,

I don't know how much you already know. TWMPMM I explains the basics on going long/short. Simple formations, entry/exit strategies, how to determine profits/losses, (the math). Easy to read and understand and provides a pretty good foundation.

The first half of the manual is devoted to getting the reader to understand that opportunities exist and that sucessfully investing in Futures is one way to increase your income.

If you understand the basics, there's TWMPMM II and it covers Options and Options on Futures. Again, easy to read and understand.

I encourage you to stick with it, like most things, you'll get out of it what you put into it. If you have any more questions, let me know, I'll be glad to help.



Bruce
95 325ic

[k9fxr]

BD325i,
How do you get your kids to PT, go they look at charts, do they only do long postitions, set exits and stops?

[BD325ic]

I have a program that identifies trends, (up, down or neutral). NO ONE knows what the markets are going to do, it only suggests probability.

After that we'll review the charts, (daily, weekly and sometime monthly) to determine potential profit targets and the risk/reward ratio, (where to place our stops).

My kids will sit in with me or my wife, we'll ask them the questions on what we're going to do. If they make a mistake, we'll point it out so they'll know for the next time. They also short the market, it was easier teaching my kids how to go short than it was my wife.

They have it down at this point.

Bruce
95 325ic

[ 02-02-2004: Message edited by: BD325ic ]