From farm to trading floor: James’ journey from rural Scotland to New York City

The bright lights of New York City are a long way from where James grew up – on a farm in Kinross-shire, Scotland. 

“My earliest memory would probably involve tractors,” he says. “I can remember sitting on my grandfather’s knee in his combine harvester, and the expectation was always that I would help out and muck in.”

James worked for the family business selling Christmas trees, and this was where he first got a taste for trading. “It’s a great feeling, striking a deal that you’re happy with. And when you grow up around farmers, everyone’s buying or selling something, so I guess it’s no wonder that I ended up as a trader.”
After completing an internship with Glencore, James’ father noticed a job advertisement in Farmer’s Weekly for a grain trader at Glencore. He encouraged James to apply.  

James got the job and then entered the world of zinc and copper concentrates following a move to Glencore’s Australian operations. Some years later, a transition to cover the North American market saw James and his family relocate to New York. 

“New York feels like the centre of the world sometimes – if stuff is happening, New York knows about it,” says James. “While it’s a very different environment from the one I enjoyed growing up, it’s a privilege to be able to share a different set of experiences with my own family.”

Today, James’ work for Glencore’s marketing business centres on supply and demand. He needs to understand the import and export dynamics behind the zinc and copper that Glencore supplies to customers, and combine that with knowledge gathered from Glencore’s own assets. 

As well as helping to ensure Glencore’s smelters have enough feedstock, either from Glencore mines or from third parties, he builds relationships with the businesses that Glencore buys zinc and copper from. He also keeps an eye out for new opportunities to bid on commodities on behalf of customers. 

“At a high level, moving product from one place to another isn’t that complicated. But there’s huge variation in what we do – from understanding how best to finance a deal, to logistics and risk management. And when things don’t go the way you expect, it’s about how you react in the moment to help find a new way forward.”

Working with his colleagues in New York and Switzerland, James enjoys the culture within his tight-knit team. But after all these years, it’s still the thrill of the deal that keeps him energised. 

“I’d be lying if I said there was any better feeling than closing a trade. Each time it happens, you feel like you’ve earned your right to be part of the team.”