Salaries in Ag trading post covid
Seems like since covid started salaries and bonuses for commodity traders are increasing but less so for Ag guys from what I’ve seen on this forum and trying to gauge what we are worth since when I’ve gotten reached out to by headhunters salaries are absolutely all over the place from shop to shop. Any of you guys seeing increases in comp across the space or at least getting bonuses commensurate to some of the energy guys for those of you more than a few years in?
Junior Trader in S&T - Comm, shame nobody has responded. Maybe one of these topics will help:
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Going to go on a rant:
Honestly ABCD is not worth it for any juniors, in terms of salaries, opportunity, and QoL. If you want the true physical ags feel come to tropical softs like coffee, cocoa, sugar, etc. You won't have to live in the Midwest and get to experience the world, all while trading in a small(er) club which is much more interesting and fun.
Would you say then Ags is basically dead if it’s not worth it for juniors? Aren’t there any incentives to commit to become more senior down the line? Or is it simply too long à la low payoff/time spent?
I would not say it's dead, that's too far. But unless you're a farm boy/girl and went to school in the Midwest and are comfortable there, it's not worth it. You'll have more competition for Head of X seats and those really only pay $400k-$700k at max. Metals, freight, O&G, heck even power are much better if you don't have a Midwest family name.
Yep, most if not all my colleagues are farming background/grew up in the area and they are good with it since it’s familiar and you do make good money. I think you might be overestimating how many people are doing stints in middle of nowhere but compared to the guys in energy yeah way higher proportion working at facilities themselves so to me it’s just standing firm on knowing where to apply to. I might be an exception but I’ve gotten a lot of responsibility I’m pretty I wouldn’t have gotten for years case in point me prompting this question since I got promoted to trade a brand new mkt but I also believe there should be more money to go with it and I just have no idea what I am worth but given the sound of it from above posters even reaching the promised land of being a product line leader you are pretty darn capped
That $400-$700k max includes bonuses/PnL share too? Doesn't it seem too low for a global desk head? And how long would you say it'd take to reach there from like a fresh start, like 10 years?
In the U.S maybe not, but I graduated university a few months ago, moved to that city in Europe known for commodity trading, after accepting a trainee role in one of the big ones, and I don't think anyone from my school (good school in western Europe) makes as much as I do.
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By the sound of the comments above, it seems grain at the entry level appears to be more accumulation focused on a domestic level. Is there a clear path to that decides if you end up trading domestically or internationally?
Hard commodities is more aligned with tropical softs - internationally traded. The international travel is a perk that comes with the job. Would hate to go to and from a farm to an elevator day in and out in the same city.
So my new trading coverage is actually pointing more international by getting a small cnf book up and running so the path exists for younger guys but it’s true I am pretty darn junior relative to counterparts I have seen so probably rarely the case that your role can get more globally focused early on
Looking from the comments above, it seems as though it'll be hard to avoid being placed in the Midwest if you're interested in ags as an American. I'm interested in international ags though, do I have to learn more foreign languages to have a higher chance of getting into those more interesting roles?
What kind of international ags? Cargill, for example, has most of their trading such as sugar, coffee, and cocoa in Europe so if you wanted to get a job at Cargill and shoot for one of those desks you can do it without knowing any other languages.
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