In many markets, information concerning forward prices is not available, making the direct modeling of forward curves a difficult task. With derivatives usually written on forward contracts and based on average prices of forward contracts, it is difficult to obtain analytical expressions for forward curves. Because of recent price volatility, organizations are increasingly looking to […]
ZEMA is a superior data management solution that provides its users with easy access to an extensive data library. ZEMA offers powerful and easy-to-use tools to collect, validate, and analyze large quantities of data in one centralized place. ZEMA’s analyses can then be easily integrated with downstream systems. One of the most sought-after functionalities of […]
When discussing oil, the Middle East immediately comes to mind. It is at the core of multiple current events occurring in the world, politically, religiously, economically, and in the energy market; therefore, it is no surprise that at the Platt’s Global Crude Oil Summit, there will be a session dedicated solely to core trends in […]
Since energy products are the backbone of the economy and are widely used by all sectors, the general belief is that a rise in energy commodity prices in translates to an increase in the price of non-energy commodities, such as metals and agricultural products. To assess the validity of this common belief, we’ll review two […]
The fiscal cliff in the United States was the hot topic surrounding domestic economic policy throughout 2012, as my colleague Ian Mathieson discussed in his year in review last December. It is safe to say that the same was true for this year as well. The global markets were once again on their toes observing […]
Within any industry or organization, the analyses performed on a daily basis are oftentimes the same series of calculations that are simply run for a different time period or on a different set of data. Nonetheless, those queries can require an inordinate amount of time and effort to replicate every day, from setting up the […]
In an unprecedented move, China rejected a quarter of U.S. corn imports this year after discovering the corn violated its ban on specific genetically modified foods. China found 545,000 metric tons of U.S. corn unacceptable after finding it contained MIR162, an insect resistant strain of the grain (The Wall Street Journal). Although MIR162 has been […]
Any time data must be put through a manual process, there is a risk of human error. The more often a business uses manual processes, the greater the likelihood that mistakes will occur; no organization is immune to the reality that manual process and human error go hand in hand. As recently as October of […]
Last week we held the third webinar from our “Data in Action” webinar series with Platts, a leading global provider of market news and benchmark price assessments for those in energy and commodity markets. Platts has been independently and impartially assessing oil markets since 1909, and with the recent crude oil developments in the U.S. […]
Forecasting is an essential part of running a business, and historical data is a vital component of forecasting. Done correctly, forecasting helps a company plan ahead and increase its chances of remaining profitable. When it comes to data, the challenge for many companies today is finding a way to analyze abundant amounts of data in […]
