What is a 'Commodity'
A commodity is a basic good used in commerce that is interchangeable with other commodities of the same type; commodities are most often used as inputs in the production of other goods or services. The quality of a given commodity may differ slightly, but it is essentially uniform across producers. When they are traded on an exchange, commodities must also meet specified minimum standards, also known as a
basis grade.
BREAKING DOWN 'Commodity'
The basic idea is that there is little differentiation between a commodity coming from one producer and the same commodity from another producer. A barrel of oil is basically the same product, regardless of the producer. By contrast, for electronics merchandise, the quality and features of a given product may be completely different depending on the producer. Some traditional examples of commodities include grains, gold, beef, oil and natural gas. More recently, the definition has expanded to include financial products, such as foreign
currencies and indexes. Technological advances have also led to new types of commodities being exchanged in the marketplace. For example, cell phone minutes and
bandwidth.
Commodities Buyers and Producers
The sale and purchase
of commodities is usually carried out through
futures contracts on exchanges that standardize the quantity and minimum quality of the commodity being traded. For example, the
Chicago Board of Trade stipulates that one wheat contract is for 5,000 bushels and also states what grades of wheat can be used to satisfy the contract.
There are two types of traders that trade commodity futures. The first are buyers and producers of commodities that use commodity futures contracts for the hedging purposes for which they were originally intended. Theses traders actually make or take delivery of the actual commodity when the futures contract expires. For example, the wheat farmer that plants a crop can hedge against the risk of losing money if the price of wheat falls before the crop is harvested. The farmer can sell wheat futures contracts when the crop is planted and guarantee a predetermined price for the wheat at the time it is harvested.
Commodities Speculators
The second type of commodities trader is the speculator. These are traders who trade in the commodities markets for the sole purpose of profiting from the volatile price movements. Theses traders never intend to make or take delivery of the actual commodity when the futures contract expires. Many of the futures markets are very liquid and have a high degree of daily range and volatility, making them very tempting markets for intraday traders. Many of the index futures are used by brokerages and portfolio managers to offset risk. Also, since commodities do not typically trade in tandem with equity and bond markets, some commodities can also be used effectively to diversify an investment portfolio.
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What is an 'Asset'
An asset is a resource with
economic value that an individual,
corporation or country owns or controls with the expectation that it will provide future benefit. Assets are reported on a company's
balance sheet, and they are bought or created to increase the value of a firm or benefit the firm's operations. An asset can be thought of as something that in the future can generate
cash flow, reduce expenses, improve sales, regardless of whether it's a company's manufacturing equipment or a patent on a particular technology.
BREAKING DOWN 'Asset'
An asset represents a present economic resource of a company to which it has a right or other type of access that other individuals or firms do not have. A right or other access is legally enforceable, which means that a company can use economic resource at its discretion, and its use can be precluded or limited by an owner. For an asset to be present, a company must possess a right to it as of the date of the financial statements. An economic resource is something that is scarce and has the ability to produce economic benefit by generating cash inflows or decreasing cash outflows.
Assets can be broadly categorized into short-term (or current) assets, fixed assets, financial investments and intangible assets. Assets are recorded on companies' balance sheets based on the concept of historical cost, which represents the original cost of the asset, adjusted for any improvements or aging. Historical cost is also called the book value.
Current Assets
Current assets are short-term economic resources that are expected to be converted into cash within one year. Current assets include cash and cash equivalents,
accounts receivable,
inventory, and various prepaid expenses. While cash is easy to value, accountants periodically reassess the recoverability of inventory and accounts receivable. If there is persuasive evidence that collectability of accounts receivable is impaired or that inventory becomes obsolete, companies may write off these assets.
Fixed Assets
Fixed assets are long-term resources, such as plants, equipment and buildings. An adjustment for aging of
fixed assets is made based on periodic charges called depreciation, which may or may not reflect the loss of earning power of a fixed asset. Generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) allow depreciation under two broad methods: the straight-line method assumes that a fixed asset loses its value in proportion to its useful life, while the accelerated method assumes that the asset loses its value faster in its first years of use.
Financial Assets
Financial assets represent investments in the assets and securities of other institutions. Financial assets include stocks, sovereign and corporate bonds, preferred equity, and other hybrid securities. Financial assets are valued depending on how the investment is categorized and the motive behind it.
Intangible Assets
Intangible assets are economic resources that have no physical presence. They include patents, trademarks, copyrights and goodwill. Accounting for intangible assets differs depending on the type of asset, and they can be either amortized or tested for impairment each year.
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