Futures For you  |  JUL 2007

Futures For You by Dan O’Neil

Futures For You by Dan O’Neil Rookie mistakes: This month, we’ll look at a pair of common questions that many new traders come across when they first wade into the commodity markets. HOW MANY MARKETS AT ONCE? I’m ready to start trading futures, and while I’m interested in a number of different markets, I’m not sure how many it makes sense to get into right away. Is there any kind of “magic number” of how many markets a trader can reasonably follow? The number of markets we should follow is certainly not set in stone, as individual traders tend to have different comfort and commitment levels. Some speculators spread their accounts across dozens of products, preferring a more diversified commodity portfolio. Other traders like to specialize in only one commodity, allowing them to focus on all of the technical studies and fundamental news surrounding just that particular market to get a feel for exactly how behaves. In truth, however, the closest thing to an ideal situation probably lies somewhere between these two extremes.

by Dan O’Neil