There is a tendency to see speculation and trading as not producing any social value. But it's nowhere near as simple as that. I'm sure there are some mooching traders, but generally I don't see that as the rule.
Think about a succesfull speculator. They are guessing that a product will be more valuable (more in demand or more rare) in the future. So they buy it when it is cheaper (in plentiful supply or low demand) and sell it when it is not. If they are good at it.
What they've done is raised the price (and gotten people to consume less) when there was plenty, and lowered the price (and allowed people to consume more) when there was little. Which is exactly the right thing for people to do anyhow! Save for a rainy day, in essence. You store up some food during the harvest so you can eat over the winter.
So I have a hard time seeing where this becomes mooching. Clearly, it could have an attitude of mooching, but it seems a lot of people have an attitude of mooching while still essentially remaining contributors. Ideas?
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