This article examines the behavior and performance of speculators and hedgers in 15 U.S. futures markets. We find that after controlling for market risk factors, speculators are contrarians, but respond positively to market sentiment. In contrast, hedgers engage in positive feedback trading and trade against market sentiment. We also find that trades of speculators (hedgers) are positively (neg...

oil seeds and crude vegetable oil are the raw materials used in vegetable oil producing industry. vegetable oil producing plants in iran are dependent on importing the material in a way that more than 90 percent of these materials are to be imported. soybean oil seed is the main oil seed utilized in the oil producing plants which is procured through importation from other countries. in the worl...

We extend the analysis on hedging with price and output uncertainty by endogenizing the output decision. Specifically, we consider the joint determination of output and hedging in the case of flexibility in production. We show that the risk-averse firm always maintains a short position in the futures market when the futures price is actuarially fair. Moreover, in the context of an example, we s...

We use a class of stochastic volatility models with multiple latent factors to investigate the joint dynamics of return, trading volume, and open interest (a proxy for market depth) in currency futures markets. In accordance with theory, the empirical evidence indicates that there is more than one latent factor affecting these three variables. However, the evidence is ambivalent on the choice b...

I discuss the short-run dynamics of commodity prices, production, and inventories, as well as the sources and effects of market volatility. I explain how prices, rates of production, ana’ inventory levels are interrelated, and are determined via equilibrium in two interconnected markets: a cash market for spot purchases and sales of the commodity, and a market for storage. I show how equilibriu...