The Commodities Game
Of all the markets in which goods are traded the most volatile and unpredictable are the commodities markets. In theory, international commodity exchanges exist to set the standards and fix the prices of primary products, such as gold, silver, copper, tin, coffee, sugar and crude oil. In practice, the prices of some of these commodities fluctuate wildly, earning and losing speculators fortunes overnight.
Instructions
First, divide into groups of up to three. You will start off with US$ 1m of capital to speculate with and may buy, sell or hold any or all of the seven commodities in which you trade.
Every ten minutes
Every ten minutes your teacher will give you an information update detailing the current commodity prices and giving you an up-to-the-minute forecast on likely changes in trading prices for each commodity. On the basis of this information you should agree on what to buy, sell or hold during this trading session. Keep a record of all your transactions. There are eight trading sessions in all.
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Your objective
Your objective is to make as much money as possible by the end of the final session. You may not borrow extra capital and may therefore need to fund purchases of a commodity whose price you believe to be going up by selling your holdings in a commodity whose price you think may be about to fall. Be careful - not all the forecasts are accurate!
Beware
Remember, 85% of all commodity speculators get wiped out. Try not to be one of them! Look for patterns and trends in the fluctuating price of each commodity and keep track of which forecasts are the most accurate. Good luck! |
TRADING CAPITAL SESSION |
GOLD $/troy oz |
SILVER $/troy oz |
COPPER $/tonne |
TIN $/tonne |
COFFEE $/tonne |
SUGAR $/tonne |
OIL $/barrel |
Start $1. 000.000
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CURRENT COMMODITY PRICES |
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1 |
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CURRENT COMMODITY PRICES |
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2 |
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current commodity prices |
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3 |
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CURRENT COMMODITY PRICES |
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4 |
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CURRENT COMMODITY PRICES |
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5 |
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CURRENT COMMODITY PRICES |
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6 |
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CURRENT COMMODITY PRICES |
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7 |
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CURRENT COMMODITY PRICES |
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8 |
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TOTAL ASSETS: |
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