Base Metals

[c_c405]

Hello folks

I'm new to this site and I used to trade base metals with a good level of success. For the past several years I have been trading forex predominantly with a little silver and gold but my forex broker does not offer base metals

Can anyone recommend a solid broker for spot trading of copper, lead, zinc, nickel & aluminum?

If this is the wrong section please accept my apologies for my err.

I have already looked at Interactive Brokers but I'm not liking the looks of their platform. Are there any solid alternatives?

Cheers
CC
:idea:

 

[Adamus]

spot trading of base metals? you don't mean futures?

Surely LME offer a list of well known brokers?

 

[c_c405]

Thanks

LME? Don't know who that is

I used to trade through a broker - He is no longer in the biz as he retired.

I've never traded them personally so if they are futures then cool - I will check out some futures brokers - was hoping that there would be a spot broker similar to spot gold and silver trading

 

[Adamus]

London Metal Exchange

but no gold, and no spot market. For gold etc you'd want to check out the NYMEX markets NYMEX.com: Gold

Did you trade spot metals? Who did you trade with? Didn't you have to pay large amounts of cash up front, and also pay warehouse fees?

Knew a Russian guy, some crazy guy on the run from the Moscow mafia, who traded physical sugar. He bought tons and tons of it over Compuserve by email and had it stored up wherever temporarily until he flogged it again. He then put the money in Deutsche Bank and kept swapping backwards and forwards between DM and USD, and eventually lost loads and disappeared.

I assume your set-up was slightly more dignified?

 

[c_c405]

Not Sure Where to start

London Metal Exchange

but no gold, and no spot market. For gold etc you'd want to check out the NYMEX markets NYMEX.com: Gold

Did you trade spot metals? Who did you trade with? Didn't you have to pay large amounts of cash up front, and also pay warehouse fees?

Knew a Russian guy, some crazy guy on the run from the Moscow mafia, who traded physical sugar. He bought tons and tons of it over Compuserve by email and had it stored up wherever temporarily until he flogged it again. He then put the money in Deutsche Bank and kept swapping backwards and forwards between DM and USD, and eventually lost loads and disappeared.

I assume your set-up was slightly more dignified?

Hi Hardy
Thanks for the pointers to the sites
Firstly I never actually traded them - I simply told the broker to "buy me some copper" he would take care of it all and he would do as I instructed - So I'm kinda newbie with it as he's retired and I must learn to do it for myself - not a biggie I like learning - just have never traded futures myself -

I have a forex broker who offers spot gold and spot silver but no base metals

So I guess I'll submit myself to knowledge from anyone who knows where I should start and can point me there to begin. I've been forex trading for quite some time and know nothing of commodity futures for metal or anything else

I was thinking if gold and silver were available on spot that maybe base metal may be as well somewhere.

if not then I was foolish to think it would be so available

Is there an encyclopedia for base metal?

 

[adamscj]

Hi Hardy
Thanks for the pointers to the sites
Firstly I never actually traded them - I simply told the broker to "buy me some copper" he would take care of it all and he would do as I instructed - So I'm kinda newbie with it as he's retired and I must learn to do it for myself - not a biggie I like learning - just have never traded futures myself -

I have a forex broker who offers spot gold and spot silver but no base metals

So I guess I'll submit myself to knowledge from anyone who knows where I should start and can point me there to begin. I've been forex trading for quite some time and know nothing of commodity futures for metal or anything else

I was thinking if gold and silver were available on spot that maybe base metal may be as well somewhere.

if not then I was foolish to think it would be so available

Is there an encyclopedia for base metal?

I'm not sure what your exact requirements are, but if you're looking to trade base metals plus gold.silver at relatively cheap comission then you could look at spread betting firms such as IG Index Commodity Spread | Trading Markets

 

[c_c405]

Thanks

I'm not sure what your exact requirements are, but if you're looking to trade base metals plus gold.silver at relatively cheap comission then you could look at spread betting firms such as IG Index Commodity Spread | Trading Markets

I'm not sure what spread betting is but I will check them out
Looking for easy trading of base metals - don't know much about the trading of them -

Cheers
Thanks

 

[Adamus]

Which is best for you will depend on your capital. If you have 30 or 40 grand or more to play with, futures would be better than spreadbetting. but it depends on the leverage you want.

 

[metals_trader]

I'm not sure what spread betting is but I will check them out
Looking for easy trading of base metals - don't know much about the trading of them -

Cheers
Thanks

As has already been mentioned you have the choice of spread betting or actually trading the futures. If you decide to do the futures route then i suggest you do it through nymex rather than LME due to the fact you live in canada nymex trading hourse will suit you better, also another plus side for you to do the futures through nymex rather than lme is the fact that lme currently only offer futures trading through there own software called LME select whereas nymex can be traded on all the main trading software eg, TT, RTS etc also nymex also offers gold and silver futures which you mentioned.
If you decide to go the spreadbetting route then most of the major spread betting companies offer a range of base and precious metals to trade.

My suggestion though is to not start trading them till you have a good solid understanding of copper as above you said you know nothing about it. you need to know stuff like what the main uses of copper are, who the main counties are supplying and are in demand for copper, what the actual physical price is compared to the future, what backwardation and contago is. Thats just a few and i suggest you try and learn as much as you can as copper aswell as the other base metals can have some very vicious moves that can catch you out if your not aware of what to look for.

 

[c_c405]

50k

I have 50K to trade metals with

Futures then?

 

[c_c405]

Thanks again

As has already been mentioned you have the choice of spread betting or actually trading the futures. If you decide to do the futures route then i suggest you do it through nymex rather than LME due to the fact you live in canada nymex trading hourse will suit you better, also another plus side for you to do the futures through nymex rather than lme is the fact that lme currently only offer futures trading through there own software called LME select whereas nymex can be traded on all the main trading software eg, TT, RTS etc also nymex also offers gold and silver futures which you mentioned.
If you decide to go the spreadbetting route then most of the major spread betting companies offer a range of base and precious metals to trade.

My suggestion though is to not start trading them till you have a good solid understanding of copper as above you said you know nothing about it. you need to know stuff like what the main uses of copper are, who the main counties are supplying and are in demand for copper, what the actual physical price is compared to the future, what backwardation and contago is. Thats just a few and i suggest you try and learn as much as you can as copper aswell as the other base metals can have some very vicious moves that can catch you out if your not aware of what to look for.

I know a lot about copper already as I worked in an industry that is heavily in copper - Plumbing - Electrical

I am fairly keen to base metals and their uses / demands - This is why I seek a bit of trading information

Thank you for your info I will learn the items you pointed out (backwardation / contago)

An I will learn about the trading platforms you metnioned TT and RTS

I usually trade during London session but will be open to trading them both (nymex & lme) once I have a handle on the trading of them.

So my homework is to learn

What futures site or info should I focus on?

Again Thanks for all your help

 

[Adamus]

CC, what did you actually trade through your broker before? And how do you work out what position to take?

 

[c_c405]

Futures

CC, what did you actually trade through your broker before? And how do you work out what position to take?

Reading up and learning a bit now I realize the broker was trading futures

I based my buys on industry uses for base metals