Trading and Hedging with Agricultural Futures and Options [Hardcover]

James B. Bittman (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 15, 2008

Today's Premier Guidebook for Understanding Agricultural Options and Making Them a Key Part of Your Trading and Risk Management Strategy Agricultural futures and options represent a vital niche in today's options trading world. Trading and Hedging with Agricultural Futures and Options takes an in-depth look at these valuable trading tools, and presents clear, proven strategies and techniques for both hedgers and traders to achieve their goals while minimizing risk. Relying on nuts-and-bolts techniques and examples as opposed to the mathematical models and theory favored by other options-trading manuals this practical, hands-on book discusses many topics, including: How hedgers and traders can use options effectively with realistic expectations Methods to understand price behavior including the Greeks (delta, gamma, vega, and theta) The importance of volatility and little-known ways to make it work to your advantage For producers and processors, agricultural futures and options are necessary components for controlling costs and hedging risks. For traders, they are proven vehicles for earning exceptional risk-adjusted profits. Whichever side of the aisle you are on, Trading and Hedging with Agricultural Futures and Options will provide you with the answers you need to effectively use these versatile tools and make them an integral part of your business.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

Today's Premier Guidebook for Understanding Agricultural Options­­and Making Them a Key Part of Your Trading and Risk Management Strategy

Agricultural futures and options represent a vital niche in today's options trading world. Trading and Hedging with Agricultural Futures and Options takes an in-depth look at these valuable trading tools, and presents clear, proven strategies and techniques for both hedgers and traders to achieve their goals while minimizing risk.

Relying on nuts-and-bolts techniques and examples­­as opposed to the mathematical models and theory favored by other options-trading manuals­­this practical, hands-on book discusses many topics, including:

• How hedgers and traders can use options effectively­­with realistic expectations
• Methods to understand price behavior including the "Greeks" (delta, gamma, vega, and theta)
• The importance of volatility­­and little-known ways to make it work to your advantage

For producers and processors, agricultural futures and options are necessary components for controlling costs and hedging risks. For traders, they are proven vehicles for earning exceptional risk-adjusted profits. Whichever side of the aisle you are on, Trading and Hedging with Agricultural Futures and Options will provide you with the answers you need to effectively use these versatile tools­­and make them an integral part of your business.

Markets in commodity futures and options first arose­­and continue to exist­­as tools for commodity producers and commodity processors to manage risk. Along the way, traders and speculators discovered their value as instruments for producing consistently superior gains. For both groups, however, authoritative and understandable information has been difficult, if not impossible, to find.

Trading and Hedging with Agricultural Futures and Options provides the information you need to get the most benefit from your trading program. Written by James Bittman, one of today's leading teachers and strategists on the effective use of futures and options, this long-awaited book is divided into three sections:

• The Basics of Futures and Options­­The vocabulary, mechanics, value components, and price behavior of these dynamic instruments
• Hedging Strategies­­A five-step process illustrating fundamental strategies for both long and short hedgers, with a chapter devoted to advanced hedging strategies
• Trading Strategies­­Explanations of how to develop realistic expectations and analyze trading alternatives, including use of the OP-EVALFTM computer program

OP-EVALFTM­­Included in its entirety on the attached CD, this custom-designed, market-tested program helps you evaluate various alternatives and strategies­­and cuts weeks from your learning curve!

Diagrams of basic hedging and trading strategies ... Discussions of volatility and advanced option pricing topics ... The role of delta, gamma, theta, and vega on price movement ... Strategies and scenarios to profit from both rising and falling markets ... Trading and Hedging with Agricultural Futures and Options will help traders and hedgers understand how agricultural options work, how they can be used to pursue specific hedging and trading goals, and what are the pros and cons of using individual techniques. Clear, concise, and practical, it explains every nuance of these unique and historically profitable instruments­­and is today's most comprehensive, easy-to-understand resource for all traders, regardless of their goals and objectives. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

About the Author

James B. Bittman is a staff instructer at The Options Institute, the education division of the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), where he teaches seminars on options to investors in the United States and Europe. He is also on the facutly at the Illinois Institue of Technology, and holds a commodity options membership at the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT). A successful options trader for more than 20 years, Bittman also wrote the best-selling, Options for the Stock Investor.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 351 pages
• Publisher: Marketplace Books; 1st edition (February 15, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1592803296
• ISBN-13: 978-1592803293
• Product Dimensions: 6.4 x 9.1 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #769,478 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars OK but too basic on ags ..., June 22, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Trading and Hedging with Agricultural Futures and Options (Hardcover)

I had great expectations of this book and thought that it would be a good primer to understanding ags futures, their behaviour & ideas (seasonality, calendar spreads, etc) on how to exploit them. However, it is more the traditional academic introduction on how to hedge ags futures, and the knowledge is very similar to any other options book. It is a good book for beginners & has some interesting intermediate strategies to explore. Well written but as an advanced options user, it adds little to persons who already knows futures & options in depth.