Tips for a beginning commodities trader?

Greetings all, I am new to commodity investing and would like to dip my toes into it.

I’ve been investing for a few years, and am fascinated with macroeconomics, and understanding how the world works in general, and how all the moving parts are intertwined.

I’ve read books such as “Reminiscences of a Stock operator” and thought Lefevre’s 30,000 foot approach to predicting certain commodities will rise based on world events was really interesting.

So I wanted to ask, as a humble beginner:

  1. What does your weekly / monthly commodity investing routine look like?
  2. Are there certain news sources or aggregators that are good to glance over, that help filter out the “noise”, and make it easier to make informed decisions?
  3. For a US-based investor, are ETF’s on the NYSE the best way to invest in commodities such as Copper, Coffee, Wheat, etc? How do you find the best investment vehicle for each commodity?

Many thanks in advance for any advice / tips.

Lefevre was just the author, not the trader, Jesse Livermore. If you’re looking for a current role model, take a look at Jim Rogers.

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Thank you Arindam, I’ll check him out. Have your read his book? Some are saying it’s outdated, I wonder if his method(s) still holds up these days.

'Way,

ETFs aren’t the “best” way to make bets on commodities. They are just one of several ways. With the exception of the energy complex and gold/silver, most of the ETFs that track individual commodities are thinly traded, making it hard to get in/out at a “fair” price.

As with any tradable --stocks, bonds, whatever-- commodities can be traded on a minute by minute basis or in longer time frames. Chef’s Choice. But they are an asset class that merits attention as the non-Western world de-dollarizes.

Charlie

PS worth looking at. Commodity News Today

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Thank you Charlie for the insight, greatly appreciated.

For longer term trading (I’m looking to hold positions for weeks / months on end), are there any trading vehicles that are (generally) a better bet?

Right now I’m wondering about the best way to long gasoline (RB1!), for the next 6 months or so. Any suggestions?

I’m guessing UGA, USO, or BNO, but wondering if there’s anything that would better follow a bull run on RB1!

'Way,

If you’re trying to trade the longer term trends, the vehicle doesn’t much matter. What does matter is trying to understand the supply-demand fundamentals about which the usual financial websites --Yahoo Finance, etc.-- are clueless. You’ve gotta hang out where them who trade the futures in those contracts hang out.

Charlie