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Commodity trader vs hedge fund trader

The differences between commodity traders and hedge fund traders can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a hedge fund trader has an average salary of $117,549, which is higher than the $93,220 average annual salary of a commodity trader.

The top three skills for a commodity trader include commodities, commodity trading and logistics. The most important skills for a hedge fund trader are hedge funds, macro, and derivative.

Commodity trader vs hedge fund trader overview

Commodity TraderHedge Fund Trader
Yearly salary$93,220$117,549
Hourly rate$44.82$56.51
Growth rate10%10%
Number of jobs10,90612,689
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 77%Bachelor's Degree, 84%
Average age4343
Years of experience--

What does a commodity trader do?

Commodity traders can be businesses or individuals that mainly focus on investing in oils, gold, or agricultural products. They keep up with the news on commodities to ensure that they know the different forces that determine their prices and use their technical analysis skills to decide to enter or exit trading decisions based on the current trend. These traders often use a futures contract to buy or sell commodities from any category at a predetermined price and time in the future.

What does a hedge fund trader do?

A Hedge Fund Trader specializes in developing investment strategies through market research and analysis. Although the extent of their duties depends on their company of employment, it typically includes managing and monitoring market portfolios, trading according to policies and regulations, reaching out to potential business partners through calls and correspondence, discussing terms, and keeping an eye on stock prices. A Hedge Fund Trader must maintain an active communication line with staff for an efficient and fruitful workflow.

Commodity trader vs hedge fund trader salary

Commodity traders and hedge fund traders have different pay scales, as shown below.

Commodity TraderHedge Fund Trader
Average salary$93,220$117,549
Salary rangeBetween $55,000 And $156,000Between $68,000 And $201,000
Highest paying CityStamford, CT-
Highest paying stateNew Hampshire-
Best paying companyThe Citadel-
Best paying industryFinance-

Differences between commodity trader and hedge fund trader education

There are a few differences between a commodity trader and a hedge fund trader in terms of educational background:

Commodity TraderHedge Fund Trader
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 77%Bachelor's Degree, 84%
Most common majorFinanceFinance
Most common collegeUniversity of PennsylvaniaUniversity of Pennsylvania

Commodity trader vs hedge fund trader demographics

Here are the differences between commodity traders' and hedge fund traders' demographics:

Commodity TraderHedge Fund Trader
Average age4343
Gender ratioMale, 87.3% Female, 12.7%Male, 65.8% Female, 34.2%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 5.5% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 11.3% Asian, 12.2% White, 66.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%Black or African American, 5.4% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 11.2% Asian, 12.2% White, 66.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%
LGBT Percentage6%6%

Differences between commodity trader and hedge fund trader duties and responsibilities

Commodity trader example responsibilities.

  • Trade, build, manage, and modele interest rate derivative positions via exchange floor
  • Manage and execute physical/financial grains book as well as base metal arbitrage portfolio.
  • Manage procurement and sales of bulk grains and agricultural commodities for redistribution into local dairy operations in Idaho.
  • Trade a variety of investment vehicles including commodity futures, FOREX and equities.
  • Develop automated and discretionary trading systems for currency, commodity futures, and equities markets.
  • Assist in audits from FINRA at corporate and branch levels.
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Hedge fund trader example responsibilities.

  • Manage business, sales, marketing, international negotiation and communication for a commodities business.
  • Trade ETF baskets base on NYSE floor position (long/short).
  • Assist with the conversion of all securities to trade directly through the NSCC.
  • Perform critical maintenance of new & existing securities in multiple operational systems by using Bloomberg.
  • Cull derivative data to profit from emerging trends.
  • Backtest various volatility strategies in equities and ETFs.
  • Show more

Commodity trader vs hedge fund trader skills

Common commodity trader skills
  • Commodities, 14%
  • Commodity Trading, 11%
  • Logistics, 11%
  • Market Trends, 9%
  • Derivative, 6%
  • Financial Markets, 5%
Common hedge fund trader skills
  • Hedge Funds, 15%
  • Macro, 14%
  • Derivative, 8%
  • Fixed Income, 7%
  • Bloomberg, 7%
  • Inbound Calls, 5%