Starting Out in Futures Trading

by Mark Powers

Overview

One of the best-known futures traders explains how to trade for profit in today's global futures marketplace

Look into the bookcase of any successful futures trader, and odds are you’ll find a worn, well-used copy of Mark Powers’s Starting Out In Futures Trading. In this new edition—the best-selling book’s first update since 1993—Powers reflects on the many new forces that are shaping the industry. From new rules and regulations to the emergence of electronic trading and the Internet, Powers’s unquestioned knowledge and experience cover all the key basics in the world of futures trading—and show traders from novice to veteran how to profit in that world.

The perfect starting point for a new trader, and a valuable refresher for anyone, Starting Out In Futures Trading, Sixth Edition, covers:

• How to choose a broker and place an order
• The increased importance of stock indices
• New research, rules, and regulations

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780071381215
Publisher:	McGraw Hill LLC
Publication date:	02/14/2001
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	367
File size:	8 MB

About the Author

Mark Powers is one of the futures industry's most respected and influential figures. A key participant in drafting many of the original contract specifications for trading currency and financial derivatives, Powers is the CEO of Powers and Dubin Asset Allocation and Management and former editor of The Journal of Futures Markets. He also served as chief economist for the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and has contributed his expertise as a director on numerous futures exchanges.

Table of Contents

Introduction. Chapter 1. Trading Stocks versus Trading Commodity Futures. Chapter 2. The Electronic Exchange. Chapter 3. Speculation Is Not a Four-Letter Word. Chapter 4. Managed Futures--A Good Alternative. Chapter 5. Commodity Index Futures--The Basket Approach to Investing. Chapter 6. The Trading Plan. Chapter 7. Choosing a Broker. Chapter 8. The Order. Chapter 9. Forecasting Prices--Supply and Demand. Chapter 10. Basic Price Patterns--Forecasting Tools. Chapter 11. Technical Analysis. Chapter 12. Technical Analylsis--The Tools and How They Work. Chapter 13. Volume and Open Interest. Chapter 14. Commodity Hedging--A Primer. Chapter 15. Hedging--The Basis. Chapter 16. Your Banker and Hedging. Chapter 17. Commodity Hedging in Action. Chapter 18. Energy Hedging--Some Examples. Chapter 19. Fact and Fiction About Spreads. Chapter 20. Financial Futures--An Introduction. Chapter 21. Money--Trading the Ultimate Commodity. Chapter 22. Understanding the "Yield Curve." Chapter 23. The Interest Rate Contracts. Chapter 24. Hedging Applications for Interest Rate Futures. Chapter 25. Stock Index Futures and Options. Chapter 26. Commodity Options. Chapter 27. Strategies for Trading Options. Chapter 28. Historical Development of Commodity Futures Trading. Chapter 29. The Commodity Futures Exchange. Appendix i: Commodity Trader's Scorecard.