Trading grains

Discussion in 'Financial Futures' started by Marsh, Jan 16, 2003.

  1. Marsh

    Marsh

    I closed my full-service broker account due to exorbitant commissions and want to trade grains with an online platform. My only experience has been calling up a broker with orders, can I trade the open outcry grains electonically? Any broker/platform recommendations? Thanks.
     
  2. You can do it but your executions will vary depending on how your broker handles orders. The grains do not have globex style electronic executions, so someone has to handle your order. If someone actually checks your order against your account, it will be slow. If it goes straight to exchange and is printed out on floor, it can still be slow because someone has to retrieve it and run it to the floor. Speed depends on location of clerk's booth,etc. If you are happy calling in orders, why not just go with a discounter who will let you call the floor? I've used several and had good service.
     
  3. josbarr

    josbarr

    Marsh,

    You can trade grains online during the day session. Fills/ reports are very quick. They are also traded electronically on (a/c/e): 8:30 p.m. - 6:00 a.m Chicago time.
     
  4. Guys I would love to hear more about your grain trading experiences. Generally anything... specifically, online brokerage, when you fast fills... how fast, daytrade, position, spreads, what grains. Or PM if you wish. Thank a lot!

    :)
     
  5. cheeks

    cheeks

    Yeah, me too.

    Is there any volume in electonic grain contracts?
     
  6. way back in the soybean clerking days, (sadly enuf it still works this way) when news of supply etc would come and the market would start moving, these runners AAA spoke of would line up in front of a filling broker.... holding the orders up for the broker to see so he will accept it first....imagine how easy it would be for a local market maker standing next to the broker to front run the dozens of market buy orders!!!!!!!

    I remember a friend trying to arb an order from his desk to a filling broker getting in trouble for doing so!!!!

    The grains are a club of families and friends which is almost impossible to break into...Personaly, i migrated into the bonds where the girls were much hotter and you could make more coin!

    The biggest money(20 mil in a trade) I ever heard of getting made on that exchange over a 10 year membership were made in long call positions (imagine that,long calls) in the grains, when they go up on fears of a drought,,,, look out!
     
  7. I think you can try to call fcstone. If you put up enough $ they can get your orders into the booth on the floor as opposed to an order desk who then cals the booth. I spoke yesterday with 5perside and they have a java app for order entry much like eminis BUT it it still handled by the pit broker so slower but defintely better than the old way.
     
  8. Before I bought my CME membership, I was a runner at the merc and the board for 6 mos eachto see which way I wanted to go... bonds or spoos. I chose spoos actually because I could never get the hang of the bonds for some reson... and the chix were hotter at the merc imo.
     
  9. I have been daytrading soybeans and wheat for the last 4 months.

    I trade with www.5perside.com (10$ r/t all included) the online discount brokerage of MAN Financial: fills are good, but sometimes confirmation comes delayed so you have to figure out whether you've been filled or not.

    Sometimes I have called the desk to get confirmations, but it is not very useful.

    I don't think you get worse fills than you'd get calling a desk; might be a different story if you could directly call the floor.

    alberto

    P.S Let's keep this thread open guys!
     
  10. links

    links Guest

    If you're used to the lighting fast fills/confirmations of the eminis, you will be in for a big surprise trading the grains.

    I agree with others, for online trading fills seem to be Ok, however getting confirmations back can take a while.

    If you plan on 'day trading' the grains, I direct phone line would be better. I think if your account size is big enough most of the brokers will accommodate direct phone access.
     
    #10     Jan 17, 2003