Speculators hope to profit from the relative changes in price between the initial and offsetting positions.
Traders are concerned with whether the changes in the difference between the sides of the spread are moving in their favor or not.
In order to find the information on seasonal spread, many traders use algorithms retrieving past commodity volatility and performance.
[2] Lower margin deposits required by commodity exchanges to trade spreads means positions can be leverage up.
Financial institutions have used professional software for this purpose, such as Seasonal Analysis Tools.