The statistical forecasting efficiency of new crop corn and soybean futures is the topic of frequent academic inquiry. However, few studies address the usefulness of these forecasts to economic agents? decision making. Each year Central Illinois producers are faced with the decision to plant...

In developing optimal hedge ratios for the soybean processing margin, many authors have illustrated the importance of considering the interactions between the cash and futures prices for soybeans, soybean oil, and soybean meal. Conditional as well as time-varying hedge ratios have been examined,...

Cointegration analysis is used to study the spot and futures price relationships for two storable commodities, corn and soybeans, and a nonstorable commodity, live hogs, over a 13-year period, 1980 to 1992. For corn and soybeans, cointegration is found in most pre-harvest contracts (July), and...

Firms always encounter risks in the process of production, distribution and marketing due to the structure of the firms, market conditions, or some unforeseen circumstances such as natural catastrophe. Instruments have been developed to help firms deal with such risks, and futures contracts are...

This study identifies the changes that have occurred in the world cocoa market, explains these changes and deduces implications for development policy. Supply of cocoa to the world market has increased and the world price of cocoa is decreasing. Cocoa is an important export commodity for...

In this research, the noise trader sentiment model of De Long, Schleifer, Summers, and Waldmann is modified and applied to futures markets. The theoretical model predicts that overly optimistic (pessimistic) noise traders result in futures prices that are greater (less) than fundamental value....

The lean hog futures contract is replacing the live hog futures contract at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange beginning with the February 1997 contract. The lean hog futures will be cash settled based on a broad-based lean hog price index, eliminating terminal markets from the price discovery...