Speculator

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A speculator is someone who trades derivatives, commodities, bonds, equities or currencies with a higher-than-average risk in return for potentially higher-than-average profits. Speculators are usually sophisticated investors with expertise in the market they are trading, and they often trade products such as futures in which leverage plays a key role.

Speculators in the commodities markets take the other side of the hedgers' positions, assuming the risks the hedgers want to shed.

In the broader sense, of course, anyone who takes a monetary risk in return for potential monetary gain, whether that is in any of the aforementioned asset categories or in land, real estate or any number of potential money-making propositions, can be considered a speculator.

1 History
2 Controversy Over Speculators
3 External Links
4 References

History

The word "speculation," in the sense of "buying and selling in search of profit from the rise or fall of market value" is recorded as early as 1774.

Controversy Over Speculators

In 2008, extremely high oil prices led Washington politicians to examine the role of speculators in the energy and commodity markets, holding more than 40 separate hearings to address the issue.^[1]

In response to this onslaught of political attention, the Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) launched a new web site, oilfuturesmarketfacts.com. The CME Group also set up a page within its web site to inform the public about the role of speculators in the commodities markets.

During the controversy, a number of airlines in the U.S. sent a letter to their customers promoting a newly launched web site, stopoilspeculationnow.com, where they tried to rally populist suppport for the speculation-limiting bills being considered before congress.