Trading Futures for Dummies -- About the Author -- Dedication -- Author's Acknowledgments -- Contents at a Glance -- Table of Contents -- Introduction -- About This Book -- Conventions Used in This Book -- What I Assume about You -- How This Book Is Organized -- Icons Used in This Book -- Where to Go from Here -- Part I: Understanding the Financial Markets -- Chapter 1: The Ins and Outs of Trading Futures -- Who Trades Futures? -- What Makes a Futures Trader Successful? -- What You Need in Order to Trade -- Seeing the Two Sides of Trading -- Getting Used to Going Short -- Managing Your Money -- Analyzing the Markets -- Noodling the Global Economy -- Relating Money Flows to the Financial Markets -- Enjoying Your Trading Habit -- Chapter 2: Where Money Comes From -- Discovering How Money Works: The Fiat System -- Introducing Central Banks ( Including the Federal Reserve) -- Understanding Money Supply -- Putting Fiat to Work for You -- Bonding with the Fed: The Nuts and Bolts of Interest Rates -- Central Banks -- Chapter 3: The Futures Markets -- Taking Big Risks and Guarding Against Them: Two Types of Traders -- Limiting Risk Exposure: Contract and Trading Rules -- Staying Up to Snuff: Criteria for Futures Contracts -- Seeing Where the Magic Happens -- Exploring How Trading Actually Takes Place -- Making the Most of Margins -- Chapter 4: Some Basic Concepts About Options on Futures -- Getting Options on Futures Straight -- Understanding Volatility: The Las Vega Syndrome -- Some Practical Stuff -- Chapter 5: Trading Futures Through the Side Door -- Introducing Exchange-Traded Funds -- Stocking Up on Stock Index Future ETFs -- Comfort via Commodity ETFs -- Getting Current with Currency ETFs -- Using ETFs in Real Trading -- Part II: Analyzing the Markets -- Chapter 6: Understanding the Fundamentals of the Economy.

Understanding the U. S. Economy: A Balancing Act -- Getting a General Handle on the Reports -- Exploring Specific Economic Reports -- Staying Awake for the Index of Leading Economic Indicators -- Trading the Big Reports -- Keeping It Simple -- Chapter 7: Getting Technical Without Getting Tense -- Picturing a Thousand Ticks: The Purpose of Technical Analysis -- First Things First: Getting a Good Charting Service -- Deciding What Types of Charts to Use -- Getting the Hang of Basic Charting Patterns -- Seeing through the Haze: Common Candlestick Patterns -- Chapter 8: Speculating Strategies That Use Advanced Technical Analysis -- Using Indicators to Make Good Trading Decisions -- Lining Up the Dots: Trading with the Technicals -- Chapter 9: Trading with Feeling Now! -- The Essence of Contrarian Thinking -- Bull Market Dynamics -- Survey Says: Trust Your Feelings -- Considering Volume (And How the Market Feels About It) -- Out in the Open with Open Interest -- Putting Put/Call Ratios to Good Use -- Understanding the Relationship Between Open Interest and Volume -- Using Soft Sentiment Signs -- Developing Your Own Sentiment Indicators -- Part III: Financial Futures -- Chapter 10: Wagging the Dog: Interest Rate Futures -- Bonding with the Universe -- Yielding to the Curve -- Deciding Your Time Frame -- Getting the Ground Rules of Interest-Rate Trading -- Playing the Short End of the Curve: Eurodollars & T-Bills -- Trading Bonds and Treasury Notes -- Chapter 11: Rocking and Rolling: Speculating with Currencies -- Understanding Foreign Exchange Rates -- Exploring Basic Spot-Market Trading -- The U. S. Dollar Index -- Trading Foreign Currency -- Arbitrage Opportunities and Sanity Requirements -- Chapter 12: Stocking Up on Indexes -- Seeing What Stock-Index Futures Have to Offer -- Contracting with the Future: Looking into Fair Value.

Major Stock-Index Futures Contracts -- Formulating Trading Strategies -- Using Your Head to Be Successful -- Part IV: Commodity Futures -- Chapter 13: Getting Slick and Slimy: Understanding Energy Futures -- Some Easy Background Info -- Completing the Circle of Life: Oil and the Bond Market -- Examining the Peak Oil Concept -- The Post-9/11 Mega Bull Market in Energy -- Understanding Supply and Demand -- Playing the Sensible Market -- Handling Seasonal Cycles -- Preparing for the Weekly Cycle -- Oil Prices by Using Oil Stocks -- Burning the Midnight Oil -- Getting the Lead Out with Gasoline -- Keeping the Chill Out with Heating Oil -- Getting Natural with Gas -- Getting in Tune with Sentiment and the Energy Markets -- Some Final Thoughts about Oil -- Chapter 14: Getting Metallic Without Getting Heavy -- Tuning In to the Economy -- Gold Market Fundamentals -- Lining the Markets with Silver -- Catalyzing Platinum -- Industrializing Your Metals -- Getting into Metal Without the Leather: Trading Copper -- Chapter 15: Getting to the Meat of the Markets: Livestock and More -- Exploring Meat-Market Supply and Demand, Cycles, and Seasonality -- Understanding Your Steak -- Understanding Your Pork Chop -- Matching Technicals with Fundamentals -- Watching for the Major Meat-Market Reports -- Interpreting Key Report Data -- Outside Influences that Affect Meat Prices -- Chapter 16: The Bumpy Truth About Agricultural Markets -- Staying Out of Trouble Down on the Farm -- Agriculture 101: Getting a Handle on the Crop Year -- Cataloging Grains and Beans -- Culling Some Good Fundamental Data -- Gauging Spring Crop Risks -- Agriculture 102: Getting Soft -- Part V: The Trading Plan -- Chapter 17: Trading with a Plan Today So You Can Do It Again Tomorrow -- Financing Your Habit -- Deciding Who's Going to Do the Trading -- Choosing a CTA -- Choosing a Broker.

Chapter 18: Looking for Balance Between the Sheets -- Exploring What's on Your Mental Balance Sheet -- The Financial Balance Sheet -- Calculating Your Net Worth -- Chapter 19: Developing Strategies Now to Avoid Pain Later -- Deciding What You'll Trade -- Adapting to the Markets -- Managing Profitable Positions -- Back Testing Your Strategies -- Setting Your Time Frame for Trading -- Setting Price Targets -- Reviewing Your Results -- Remember Your Successes and Manage Your Failures -- Making the Right Adjustments -- Chapter 20: Executing Successful Trades -- Setting the Stage -- Getting the Big Picture -- Stalking the Setup -- Jumping on the Wild Beast: Calling In Your Order -- Riding the Storm -- Knowing If You've Had Enough -- Reviewing Your Trade -- Mastering the Right Lessons -- Part VI: The Part of Tens -- Chapter 21: Ten Killer Rules to Keep You Sane and Solvent -- Trust in Chaos -- Avoid Undercapitalization -- Be Patient -- Trade with the Trend -- Believe in the Charts, Not the Talking Heads -- Remember, Diversification Is Protection -- Limit Losses -- Trade Small -- Have Low Expectations -- Set Realistic Goals -- Chapter 22: More Than Ten Additional Resources -- Government Web Sites -- General Investment Information Web Sites -- Commodity Exchanges -- Trading Books -- Newsletter and Magazine Resources -- Index.