Commodity investing has recently become increasingly popular as the exchange traded world has opened this once elusive asset class wide open. Still, one of the most effective ways to maintain exposure to your favorite hard asset remains through futures contracts. In the yesteryears, for the average investor, futures were typically too complex due to the fact that they were termed as extremely dangerous, hard to understand, and required a specified account just to trade them. But this notion has changed over the years, with knowledgeable investors working the facts in predicting the price levels in the coming days. For these investors, investing in the futures remains the most direct and potentially most profitable way to make a mark in the commodity space.

When it comes to futures investing, many traders are unsure where to begin. Unlike equities, the contracts are spread over the months, as opposed to two or three that completely dominates the market. Futures investors need to keep themselves educated on the various contracts with special attention to the specifications. Below we outline five of the most popular commodity future exchanges in the world.

• Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME): A financial and commodity derivatives trading platform headquartered in Chicago, CME offers contracts of all kinds including agriculture, credit, economic events, equity index, FX and interest rates.
• Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT): Established in 1848, the CBOT ranks as the oldest futures exchanges in the world. The exchange offers more than 50 different futures contracts for investment across a number of asset classes. As of 2007, the CBOT operates as a subsidiary of the CME group.
• New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX): The NYMEX is the world’s largest physical commodity futures exchange, offering exposure to a wide variety of products. COMEX also operates as a division of the NYMEX. The two divisions joined in late 2006, and were acquired by the CME group in early 2008.
• London Metal Exchange (LME): Stationed in the United Kingdom, the LME is a major exchange that offers exposure to futures to a wide variety of base metals and other commodities. Though founded in 1877, the exchange can trace its roots all the way back to 1571, when the Royal Exchange in London was opened, only trading copper at its origins.
• Intercontinental Exchange Inc. (ICE): The ICE is a US based company that operates futures and OTC contracts via internet marketplace.

Have a great weekend everyone!