You Can't Lose Trading Commodities

by Robert F. Wiest

Please accept my apology for several contradictions which appear in this book. An attempt on my part to correct these discrepancies would have delayed publication further, and I decided that the numerous exceptionally attractive scale trading opportunities which exist at this time made it imperative that I publish the book immediately.

Encouraging you to take advantage of some of these remarkable situations, and assisting you in understanding how to exploit them, seemed more important to me than altering several of the illustrations used throughout the book to make the numbers agree in every case.

Six years ago when I started writing this book, silver was $4.50 per ounce, and the prime interest rate was 8%. That was perfect for illustrations of carrying charges, for that equaled 36 cents annually, or precisely 3 cents per month. As time passed, the price of silver rose, as did the prime rate.

In an effort to keep the examples timely I was forced to rewrite numerous chapters, adjusting for changes in silver's price or prime rate increases. On rare occasions interest rates declined, and it became necessary to revert to previously used examples. At times the combination of silver's price and the prevailing interest virtual certainty that you will lose. More simply stated: if you trade, you lose.

The reason nearly everyone trading commodities loses is because he takes $5,000 or $10,000 and tries to run it into $100,000 in six months. Every once in awhile someone succeeds. Unfortunately it happens just often enough for the stories to get around and make the others believe it can happen to them. Commodity brokers exist only because this $100,000-for-$10,000 phenomenon occurs just often enough for them to retell the tale to the new sheep who have lined up for the shearing.

For each trader who wins $100,000 there are hundreds who lose a few thousand each. Even the $100,000 winners will eventually surrender their winnings. All of this is as certain as tomorrow's sunrise.

It is to these thousands—indeed, tens of thousands of losers that this book is respectfully dedicated.

They should have learned by now that You Can't Win Trading Commodities. But if you will take the time to read this book I will demonstrate to you how You Can't Lose Trading Commodities.