Commodities
a.k.a. Raw materials
Raw materials like oil, gold, wheat and copper, traded in global markets where supply shocks hit prices hard.
Commodities are physical goods: energy (oil, gas), metals (gold, silver, copper) and farm products (wheat, coffee, sugar). Most traders never touch a barrel; they trade prices through futures and other derivatives.
Commodities and currencies are tangled together. Oil prices tug on the Canadian dollar and Norwegian krone; metals tug on the Australian dollar. Gold often rallies when fear runs high. Supply shocks make for brutal volatility.
Gold on the move
- Gold rises from $2,000 to $2,100 an ounce.
- Change: $100 ÷ $2,000 = 5%.
- A holding of 2 ounces gains 2 × $100 = $200.
Bottom line: A 5% move on a metal can land in a single nervous week.
Trading oil or gas with forex-sized positions, forgetting how violently commodities can gap.
Keep this word for good
Your free Private Swap Lounge saves the terms you’ve learned and quizzes you on them. Portal under construction. Expected delivery date is December 01, 2026.