Overview

Physical commodity trading is one of the least understood - and poorly explained - parts of global markets. This definitive guide walks the reader through the full lifecycle of physical commodity trading, including: Why commodity traders exist and the role they play between producers and consumers How physical supply chains work - from mine, well, or farm to end user The difference between physical trading and futures or paper markets How commodities are prices, contracted, and delivered Hedging, mark-to-market, and exposure management Logistics, shipping, storage, and operational risk Trade finance, title documents, and cash-flow constraints Counterparty risk, defaults, and periods of market stress Where real profits are made, and where costly mistakes occur Alongside structured explanations, this book includes personal stories from the trading floor, illustrating: How decisions are made under pressure Where mistakes are most commonly made, and why How small operational errors can lead to large financial losses The human side of trading that rarely makes it into textbooks If you want to understand physical commodity trading, not just the prices on a screen but the flows, risks, and decisions behind them, this book was written for you.

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Samuel Basi is a commodities trader, risk-management specialist, and founder of Perfectly Hedged LLC. He began his career in 2009 at Trafigura, one of the world's largest commodity trading firms, where he spent over a decade trading, hedging, and managing risk across global base-metal markets.Starting in operations and moving onto the hedging and trading desks, Samuel worked across aluminum, zinc, lead, and copper, with exposure spanning Europe, the Middle East, Asia, and the Americas. At just 24 years old, he became one of the youngest physical traders in Trafigura's history, building and running large-scale physical trading books with both domestic and international flows. During his tenure, he significantly expanded traded volumes, managed complex arbitrage and spread risk across the LME and CME, and played a key role in the marketing and integration of the Nyrstar Clarksville zinc smelter following Trafigura's acquisition of Nyrstar.In 2019, Samuel joined Greenwich Metals Inc., where he built and led the derivatives desk from the ground up. Alongside managing firm-wide risk, he ran a proprietary trading book and developed discretionary and systematic strategies across futures and options markets. He also served on the firm's risk committee and regularly delivered internal training on market risk, margin, and exchange mechanics.In 2023, Samuel founded Perfectly Hedged LLC to address a gap he saw throughout the industry: a lack of practical, accessible education around hedging and physical commodity risk. His work focuses on demystifying complex topics and reducing the costly, avoidable mistakes that often occur between front, middle, and back office teams.He is the author of Perfectly Hedged: A Practical Guide to Base Metals and The Physical Trade: A Definitive Guide to Physical Commodity Trading. His books combine real-world trading experience with clear explanations, practical examples, and insights rarely found in traditional commodity literature. They are written for professionals across trading, operations, finance, and risk, as well as anyone looking to understand how physical commodity markets truly work.

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