Commodities Trader Interview Questions UK: 8 Real Questions and What Interviewers Want

Before your Commodities Trader interview, it helps to see the questions from the interviewer's side. We have picked eight from our set of 12 and added the reason each one gets asked.

Eight Commodities Trader interview questions, and what the interviewer is thinking

1. What does a typical day as a commodities trader involve, and what draws you to this market?

Why they ask: To see whether you understand the rhythm of a trading desk and have genuine commodity market interest.

2. Explain contango and backwardation, and how storage economics determine how far a curve can move into contango.

Why they ask: To test core knowledge of futures curves, which sits behind most commodity strategies.

3. What is inside information under UK REMIT and UK MAR, and how does it affect how you speak to market participants?

Why they ask: To check regulatory awareness, which is crucial for anyone trading energy and commodity derivatives in the UK.

4. How would you use spreads such as crack, spark or Brent-WTI to express a market view, and what are the risks?

Why they ask: To test whether you understand relative value trading, which is central to commodity desks.

5. How would you hedge a customer's physical commodity exposure with futures, and what is basis risk?

Why they ask: To test practical hedging knowledge, the bread and butter of a commodities desk.

6. How do credit risk and margining work in commodity trading, and what documentation would you expect to see with a counterparty?

Why they ask: To check understanding of the counterparty side, which often limits what a trader can do.

7. A position moves sharply against you after an unexpected pipeline outage and you are close to your stop-loss. What do you do?

Why they ask: To test discipline and decision-making when a position is losing.

8. Tell me about a trade or investment idea you developed from fundamental analysis and what happened.

Why they ask: To see whether you can generate, size and review ideas with a clear rationale.

A sample answer to question 1

What does a typical day as a commodities trader involve, and what draws you to this market?

I would be in before the Asian close to review overnight price action, inventory data, weather forecasts and any news on supply disruptions. I check my positions, P&L and risk against limits, then talk to the desk and the origination and scheduling teams about physical flows. During the day I trade futures, swaps and physical, respond to data such as EIA inventories or gas storage reports, and adjust hedges as the curve moves. I finish by reconciling positions with middle office, checking the risk report and planning the next day. What draws me to commodities is that prices are driven by tangible things, from refinery outages to wind output and shipping, so fundamental research really matters. It also requires you to combine market views with logistics and credit judgement, which I find more rewarding than purely financial markets.

Common mistake to avoid: Focusing only on the excitement of profit; showing no knowledge of specific commodity drivers

Want the rest?

Full model answers, key points and common mistakes for all 12 questions are on the Commodities Trader interview questions page. The first five are free, no sign-up needed.