"Playing with asphalt" refers to: spot asphalt. The operation methods of spot trading and futures trading are very similar. The transactions are all T+0, and there is a short-selling mechanism. The transaction is very flexible, unlike stocks that only Can do more. The difference between it and futures is that: futures are forward contracts, there is no real product, and the transaction can be magnified, so the risk is very high; spot trading has real products out there, and it is generally a 2% margin, so the transaction risk is small; of course , the risk is small, and the returns will be relatively small.

Basic introduction: Asphalt is a dark-brown complex mixture composed of hydrocarbons of different molecular weights and their non-metallic derivatives. Asphalt can be mainly divided into three types: coal tar asphalt, petroleum asphalt and natural asphalt. Coal tar pitch is a by-product of coking. Petroleum asphalt is the residue or reprocessed product after various light oil-based lubricants are extracted from crude oil distillation. Natural asphalt is stored underground, and some form mineral deposits or accumulate on the surface of the earth's crust.

Function: Asphalt is mainly used in coatings, plastics, rubber and other industries, as well as people's most popular impression of asphalt's role - paving roads, etc.

Demand: The static investment in the national highway planning network in the next 30 years is 2 trillion yuan. From 2010 to 2020, the average annual investment is 100 billion yuan, and the state strongly supports road transportation construction.

Investment value: 1. Asphalt is a completely competitive product, and the price is completely determined by the supply and demand side;

2. Asphalt is a completely open product, with no threshold for import and export;

3. The size of the asphalt market is gradually growing, and spot transactions have exceeded 20 million tons;

4. Bulk purchases and sales in the asphalt spot market are mainly forward transactions, with a large number of potential hedging Demand for value preservation;

5. The world’s first asphalt futures contract;