commodities and energy markets
Educational articles in this subcategory.
Glossary: Commodity and Energy Terms
## About This Glossary This reference covers essential terms for understanding commodity and energy markets. Terms are alphabetized for quick lookup....
Agricultural Commodities and Seasonality
## Why Agricultural Prices Follow Calendars Agricultural commodity prices move on seasonal rhythms that other commodities lack. Corn, soybeans, and w...
Investing via Futures, ETFs, and Stocks
## Ways to Access Commodities Investors seeking commodity exposure have three main paths: trading futures contracts directly, buying commodity-focuse...
Regulatory Environment for US Commodities
## Overview of US Commodity Regulation US commodity markets operate under a multi-layered regulatory framework. The Commodity Futures Trading Commiss...
Geopolitical Risks in Energy Markets
## Why Geopolitics Matters for Energy Energy markets are uniquely sensitive to geopolitical events. Oil and natural gas supply chains span continents...
Carbon Markets and Renewable Energy Credits
## What Carbon Markets Do Carbon markets put a price on greenhouse gas emissions. By making emissions costly, these markets create financial incentiv...
Hedging Programs for Producers and Consumers
Companies exposed to commodity price risk—whether as producers or consumers—use hedging programs to stabilize cash flows and protect margins. Airlines...
Storage Costs and Convenience Yield
Commodity futures prices don't exist in isolation from physical market realities. The relationship between spot and futures prices follows predictable...
Contango vs. Backwardation Explained
The shape of the futures curve determines whether rolling futures contracts generates gains or losses. This distinction matters enormously for commodi...
Commodity Index Construction
Commodity indexes provide benchmarks for the asset class and serve as the basis for billions of dollars in ETFs, mutual funds, and structured products...
Livestock and Soft Commodities Basics
Livestock and soft commodities represent distinct segments of the commodities market, each with unique supply cycles, weather dependencies, and geogra...
Copper as an Economic Indicator
## Why Copper Gets a PhD Traders call copper "Dr. Copper" because its price movements often diagnose the health of the global economy before official...
Metals Markets: Precious vs. Industrial
## Two Different Markets, Two Different Stories Metals markets divide into two distinct categories: **precious metals** (gold, silver, platinum, pall...
Electricity Markets and Regional Differences
## Why Electricity Markets Are Different Electricity cannot be stored economically at scale. What gets generated must be consumed instantly. This phy...
Natural Gas Pricing Hubs and Seasonality
## Why Natural Gas Pricing Differs by Location Natural gas prices vary by **where you measure them**. Unlike oil (which ships globally in tankers), n...
Crack Spreads and Refining Margins
**Refiners don't care about the absolute price of oil.** They care about the difference between what they pay for crude and what they receive for gaso...
Inventory Reports (EIA, API) and Price Impact
**Every Wednesday at 10:30 AM Eastern, oil prices move.** That's when the US Energy Information Administration releases its weekly petroleum status re...
OPEC+ Policy and US Shale Response
**Global oil prices are set by a tug-of-war between two production systems.** On one side: OPEC+ (a coalition of oil-exporting nations) that coordinat...
Energy Supply Chain: From Wellhead to Pump
**A barrel of oil travels thousands of miles and changes hands multiple times before becoming the gasoline in your tank.** The energy supply chain div...
Oil Market Structure: Brent vs. WTI
**Crude oil isn't a single commodity.** There are dozens of crude grades worldwide, each with different characteristics and regional pricing. For inve...