Water trade was launched this week in the future market at Wall Street, and thus this resource joined goods such as petroleum, gold and wheat, announced the largest global marketplace for financial derivatives, the CME Group, the Tanjug reports.

Trading began with futures of Californian water, indicating concerns about potential future shortage of this natural resource in most parts of the world.

Farmers, hedge funds and local self-governments can now get protected by investing in the future availability of water in California, the largest US agricultural market.

On Monday, the CME Group initiated trading related to the Californian water spot market worth more than USD1.1 bn, with the closing price of USD496 per hectare.

Financial experts say that water trading will enable better management of future risks related to this key natural resource.

They reiterate that the water price in California doubled in the last year.