Trading In Privileges on the Chicago Board of Trade

Report Introduction: Aside from a few short paragraphs in textbooks and pamphlets describing privileges, comments made from a historical standpoint by C. H. Taylor, a former member of the Chicago Board of Trade, and references made in published hearings of congressional committees as to the desirability of retaining or abolishing privileges, and the Report of the Federal Trade Commission on the Grain Trade, nothing has been printed which throws light on trading in privileges. No comprehensive study had ever been made as to the extent privileges were traded in, the uses made of them by merchandisers of grain and by speculators, the frequency with which they were exercisable at a profit to buyers, and their economic value until the task was begun by the Grain Futures Administration. In preparing a report in answer to Senate Resolution 40, adopted by the United States Senate on February 21, 1928, which requested certain information pertaining to reports made by members of grain exchanges, considerable data were collected concerning trading in grain futures during the period of January 3 to October 31, 1927. By obtaining supplementary material showing the privileges bought and sold on the Chicago Board of Trade by the principal traders in privileges during that period, it was possible to arrive at definite conclusions as to the extent bids and offers were traded in and used by the larger speculators in building up and disposing of speculative lines in Chicago wheat and corn futures. Additional data, obtained and analyzed, revealed the frequency with which privileges are exercised on the board of trade and the extent to which they may have a stabilizing influence on prices of futures. In addition to concrete statistical data, the uses made of trading in privileges are presented herein together with the unfavorable aspects of such trading. Reference is also made to the change of attitude from time to time on the part of the officials of the Chicago Board of Trade with respect to privilege trading. Because of the scarcity of material on privilege trading it has been deemed advisable to make public the information collected by the Grain Futures Administration in order that it may throw further light on that phase of exchange activity for the benefit of those who may wish information on the subject.

报告引言：除教科书与宣传册中少数描述特权（privileges）的简短段落、芝加哥期货交易所（Chicago Board of Trade）前成员C. H. Taylor从历史角度发表的评论、国会委员会公开听证会上关于保留或废除特权的必要性的提及，以及联邦贸易委员会（Federal Trade Commission）关于谷物贸易的报告外，目前尚无任何出版物对特权交易进行阐释。在谷物期货管理局（Grain Futures Administration）启动此项研究之前，从未有人就特权交易的规模、谷物商与投机者对其的使用方式、买方行使特权获利的频率及其经济价值展开过全面研究。为响应美国参议院1928年2月21日通过的第40号参议院决议（该决议要求提供与谷物交易所成员提交报告相关的特定信息），我们收集了1927年1月3日至10月31日期间谷物期货交易的大量数据。通过获取补充材料（这些材料显示了该期间内芝加哥期货交易所主要特权交易者的特权买卖情况），我们得以就以下方面得出明确结论：大额投机者在建立和处置芝加哥小麦与玉米期货投机头寸时，对买卖盘的交易及使用程度。经获取与分析的补充数据还揭示了在交易所行使特权的频率，以及其对期货价格可能产生的稳定影响程度。除具体统计数据外，本文还阐述了特权交易的用途及其不利方面，并提及芝加哥期货交易所官员对特权交易态度的不时变化。鉴于特权交易相关资料匮乏，公开谷物期货管理局收集的信息被认为是适宜之举，此举可为希望了解该主题的人士进一步阐释交易所活动的这一领域。