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This week, Tracey is joined by Zacks Equity Strategist and Editor of the Counterstrike and Commodity Innovators newsletters, Jeremy Mullin, to discuss how you can trade and invest in commodities both for the short-term and the long haul.

After the Phase 1 trade deal between China and the US was signed, it seemed like trade tensions were going to ratchet down a notch which would mean good things for the global economy.

Both China and the US were seen as being on the rebound heading into 2020.

The Coronavirus Upends the Global Economy

But then the coronavirus struck, and it has thrown previous assumptions in disarray. China will certainly see a slowdown in its economy.

It’s already being reflected in the industrial commodities as copper, for instance, fell 12 straight trading days, which was the longest consecutive decline in over 40 years.

Crude also hit new 52-week lows with WTI testing the important $50 level. If it breaks lower, Jeremy sees it going as low as $28 a barrel.

How do you play crude here?

Some Commodities are Red Hot

But not all commodities are near 52-week lows, like crude. Others have been hot investments, including Palladium.

Palladium is up 18% in just 2020 alone and soared 69% over the last year.

How can an investor get in on that?

There’s the Aberdeen Standard Physical Palladium Shares ETF (PALL - Free Report) which trades with average daily volume of 53,000.

How much longer will it stay red hot?

Different Ways to Play Commodities

1. The short-term play is to simply trade the leveraged ETFs such as the VelocityShares 3x Long Gold ETN (UGLD - Free Report). Gold has been on the move again in 2020, due to uncertainties about the coronavirus. These ETFs are designed to be held for short periods as a play on the metal.

2. The middle-term play is to buy stocks in industries that have a commodities impact. Instead of buying the Copper ETF (CPER - Free Report), you can buy a copper miner such as Freeport McMoran (FCX - Free Report) and hold it for 3 to 6 months, as a way to play the trend.

3. The long-term play is to hold onto some stocks until the trend really turns. US Steel (X - Free Report), for example, is in a downward trend right now, as its earnings estimates continue to get cut by Wall Street analysts. It’s unlikely to turn around in the near-term.