Futures For You  |  JUN 2006

Stocks & Commodities V. 24:6 (77) : Futures For You by Dan O’Neil

Stocks & Commodities V. 24:6 (77) : Futures For You by Dan O’Neil INSIDE THE FUTURES WORLD Want to learn how the futures markets really work? Dan O’Neil, a principal at online futures and forex broker XPRESSTRADE (www.xpresstrade.com), responds to your questions about today’s futures markets. To submit a question, post your question to our website at http://Message-Boards.Traders.com. Answers will be posted there, and selected questions will appear in a future issue of S&C. FUTURES ON BASE METALS I’ve been trading gold and silver for years, but lately my attention’s been drawn to the nonferrous metals. I’ve read that metals like aluminum, zinc, and nickel have been moving higher. How can I trade these products? A: While gold, silver, and other precious metals grab all the headlines, industrial metals like copper, aluminum, lead, tin, nickel, and zinc have been racking up big gains, too. Strong growth and unexpected demand shocks from China and other emerging economies, combined with supply disruptions and delays in bringing new production online, are driving metal prices higher. Anytime a market or sector is trending higher, you can be sure that opportunistic traders will sit up and take notice. The New York Mercantile Exchange’s COMEX division remains the leader in trading futures on precious metals. But if you’re interested in the nonferrous metals, the preeminent marketplace is the London Metal Exchange (LME). The LME’S origins can be traced as far back as the opening of the Royal Exchange in 1571. This is where metal traders first began to meet. However, it was in 1877 that the London Metal Market and Exchange was formed as a result of Britain’s industrial revolution.

by Dan O’Neil