| Contract | 2021 Volume (in contracts) | Year-Over-Year Change |
|---|---|---|
| WTI Light Sweet Crude Oil (CL) Futures, New York Mercantile Exchange | 248,314,481 | -9.4% |
| Henry Hub Natural Gas (NG) Futures, New York Mercantile Exchange | 97,588,795 | -19.2% |
| Corn Futures, Chicago Board of Trade | 86,901,950 | -3.2% |
| Gold (GC) Futures, Commodity Exchange (COMEX) | 58,464,997 | -25.2% |
| Soybean Futures, Chicago Board of Trade | 53,324,458 | -12.8% |
| RBOB Gasoline Physical (RB) Futures, New York Mercantile Exchange | 47,837,998 | 2.9% |
| NY Harbor ULSD (HO) Futures, New York Mercantile Exchange | 38,711,497 | -12.0% |
| Soybean Oil Futures, Chicago Board of Trade | 32,675,376 | -0.9% |
| Sugar #11 Futures, ICE Futures US | 31,002,757 | -22.4% |
| Chicago Soft Red Winter Wheat Futures, Chicago Board of Trade | 29,977,000 | -10.2% |
What To Look For When Considering Liquidity
When selecting commodity markets to trade, a number of metrics can assist us in making the best choices.
Liquidity is a significant consideration. It is important to be able to enter and exit positions without a great deal of slippage.
Note
Slippage is the loss that occurs due to wide bid-offer spreads or price gaps that can occur in commodities that exhibit low degrees of liquidity.
Highly liquid commodities have less risk of slippage, not because they are more or less volatile, but simply because more people trade them.
When evaluating a commodity for tradability, volume and open interest are important metrics to watch. Volume is the total number of contracts that trade, and open interest is the total number of open long and short positions in a market. The more volume and open interest in a commodity, the less slippage. Volume and open interest numbers are published by future exchanges like the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) and the Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), among others around the world.
Remember that today’s most actively traded commodities are not necessarily the same as tomorrow’s. Action begets action in markets. When the oil market becomes highly volatile, it attracts more price speculators, which will increase both volume and open interest.
If a commodity price remains quiet, and the trading range narrows, the falling potential for profits will deter speculation. This will naturally result in a decrease of volume and open interest in that market. Therefore, always pay attention to whether a market has sufficient liquidity and interest before taking the plunge and trading or investing in that asset.
What Are Some Factors in Liquidity?
Liquidity and activity are functions of price action. While some markets, like gold and crude oil, always attract a high number of market participants, lumber and frozen concentrated orange juice futures tend to always suffer from liquidity problems. Other commodities come into and go out of fashion over time.
The supply-and-demand fundamentals for commodities can change liquidity. For example, if there is a sudden shortage of a commodity, and the price begins to move higher, it will attract speculative buying. On the other hand, if a market is unexpectedly hit with a huge supply, speculative selling will often appear. In both of these cases, volume and open interest are likely to rise.
Note
In the world of commodities trading and investing, macroeconomic forces also play a role in liquidity.
The great bull market in commodities from 2000 to 2014 attracted a great deal of interest to all raw material markets. The advent of new products, ETFs, and ETNs brought new participants to markets.
Prior to the introduction of these market vehicles, the only potential for trading and investing could be found in the physical or future markets. ETF and ETN products increased volume and open interest in the futures markets as administrators, managers, and issuers of these products often use the futures exchanges to hedge risks associated with the new products that trade on traditional equity exchanges. The ETF and ETN products create the ability for arbitrage or spreading futures against the ETF/ETN vehicles to take advantage of price discrepancies.
Comparing current volume and open interest numbers to historical levels will help you understand whether a market offers both the potential and the liquidity necessary to make it a candidate for your trading and investing pursuits.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What are commodities?
Commodities are natural resources and agricultural products that are traded in bulk. Examples include wheat, corn, cattle, cotton, lumber, sugar and fossil fuels. Precious metals such as gold as well as domestic and foreign currencies are also traded as commodities. Producers of commodities are usually selling, while buyers are often companies that use the resource or product.
Where are commodities traded?
Commodities are traded on the futures exchange. Exchanges allow for an easier and safer transactions. The Commodities Futures Trading Commission regulates exchanges, buyers and sellers.
Exchanges allow for commodities to be bought and sold with standard contracts that include a price and future delivery date. The exchanges have a clearinghouse, which validates and finalizes the transactions.