Trading commodities is actually like life.

You make money , you lose money, you break even.

To agree with, but to expand on what Maynard the Mayan said, depending on the time frame if you make money this minute, hour, day, week, month, year you might be successful and you could loose it all the next minute, hour, day, week, month, year. I don’t know that the word successful should be used when talking about trading.

I hope you will take this in the spirit in which it is intended, with due respect.
When a person starts out learning something whether it be in a classroom or the classroom of life experience one has lots of awkward moments learning in the beginning because they don’t know; another reason might be because what is taught in a classroom does not resemble anything in the “real life” of what they are studying.

I truly hope many years from now after you’ve almost paid back your loans for grad school and you are in the real world I hope you have and take the opportunity to learn about commodities trading, because I know there will be a time when you can look back over the questions you’ve ask and laugh, which could be good tonic for the ton of money you lost that day, week, month or year.

And I do realize it’s a class assignment and not your own questions.

Very good luck to you!!!!!

KJB22