Commodity market in Sumer between 4500 BC and 4000 BC. Sumerians first used clay tokens sealed in a clay vessel, then clay writing tablets to represent the amount—for example, the number of goats, to be delivered. These promises of time and date of delivery resemble futures contract. Early civilizations variously used pigs, rare seashells, or other items as commodity money. Since that time traders have sought ways to simplify and standardize trade contracts. Gold and silver markets evolved in classical civilizations. At first the precious metals were valued for their beauty and intrinsic worth and were associated with royalty. In time, they
Commodity swap commodity swap, the floating leg is based on the price of underlying commodity like oil, sugar, and precious metals. No commodities are exchanged during the trade. In this swap, the user of a commodity would secure a maximum price and agree to pay a financial institution this fixed price. Then, in return, the user would get payments based on the market price for the commodity involved. On the other side, a producer wishes to fix the income and would agree to pay the market price to a financial institution, in return for receiving fixed payments for the commodity. Commodity swap