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Facts and Fantasies about Commodity Futures

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Author Info
Gary Gorton
K. Geert Rouwenhorst

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Abstract

We construct an equally-weighted index of commodity futures monthly returns over the period between July of 1959 and March of 2004 in order to study simple properties of commodity futures as an asset class. Fully-collateralized commodity futures have historically offered the same return and Sharpe ratio as equities. While the risk premium on commodity futures is essentially the same as equities, commodity futures returns are negatively correlated with equity returns and bond returns. The negative correlation between commodity futures and the other asset classes is due, in significant part, to different behavior over the business cycle. In addition, commodity futures are positively correlated with inflation, unexpected inflation, and changes in expected inflation.

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Paper provided by National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc in its series NBER Working Papers with number 10595.

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Date of creation: Jun 2004
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Handle: RePEc:nbr:nberwo:10595

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Find related papers by JEL classification:
G13 - Financial Economics - - General Financial Markets - - - Contingent Pricing; Futures Pricing
G11 - Financial Economics - - General Financial Markets - - - Portfolio Choice; Investment Decisions

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References listed on IDEAS
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  1. Hamilton, James D, 1983. "Oil and the Macroeconomy since World War II," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 91(2), pages 228-48, April. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  2. Hamilton, James D., 2003. "What is an oil shock?," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 113(2), pages 363-398, April. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  3. Jagannathan, Ravi, 1985. " An Investigation of Commodity Futures Prices Using the Consumption-based Intertemporal Capital Asset Pricing Model," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 40(1), pages 175-91, March. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  4. Black, Fischer, 1976. "The pricing of commodity contracts," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 3(1-2), pages 167-179. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  5. James D. Hamilton, 1985. "Historical Causes of Postwar Oil Shocks and Recessions," The Energy Journal, International Association for Energy Economics, vol. 6(1), pages 97-116.
  6. Schwert, G William, 1981. "The Adjustment of Stock Prices to Information about Inflation," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 36(1), pages 15-29, March. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  7. Bessembinder, Hendrik, 1992. "Systematic Risk, Hedging Pressure, and Risk Premiums in Futures Markets," Review of Financial Studies, Oxford University Press for Society for Financial Studies, vol. 5(4), pages 637-67. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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(explanations, Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.)

  1. Alquist, Ron & Kilian, Lutz, 2007. "What Do We Learn from the Price of Crude Oil Futures?," CEPR Discussion Papers 6548, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  2. Jaime Casassus & Pierre Collin-Dufresne & Bryan R. Routledge, 2005. "Equilibrium Commodity Prices with Irreversible Investment and Non-Linear Technology," NBER Working Papers 11864, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  3. George M. Korniotis, 2009. "Does speculation affect spot price levels? the case of metals with and without futures markets," Finance and Economics Discussion Series 2009-29, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (U.S.). [Downloadable!]
  4. Jonathan A. Batten, Cetin Ciner and Brian M. Lucey, 2008. "The Macroeconomic Determinants of Volatility in Precious Metals Markets," The Institute for International Integration Studies Discussion Paper Series iiisdp255, IIIS. [Downloadable!]
  5. Geetesh Bhardwaj & Gary B. Gorton & K. Geert Rouwenhorst, 2008. "Fooling Some of the People All of the Time: The Inefficient Performance and Persistence of Commodity Trading Advisors," NBER Working Papers 14424, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  6. Patrizio Pagano & Massimiliano Pisani, 2006. "Risk-Adjusted Forecasts of Oil Prices," Temi di discussione (Economic working papers) 585, Bank of Italy, Economic Research Department. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  7. Claude B. Erb & Campbell R. Harvey, 2005. "The Tactical and Strategic Value of Commodity Futures," NBER Working Papers 11222, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  8. Elif C. Arbatli, 2008. "Futures Markets, Oil Prices and the Intertemporal Approach to the Current Account," Working Papers 08-48, Bank of Canada. [Downloadable!]
  9. Dieter Hess & He Huang & Alexandra Niessen, 2008. "How do commodity futures respond to macroeconomic news?," Financial Markets and Portfolio Management, Springer, vol. 22(2), pages 127-146, June. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  10. Sanders, Dwight R. & Irwin, Scott H. & Merrin, Robert P., 2008. "The Adequacy of Speculation in Agricultural Futures Markets:Too Much of a Good Thing?," 2008 Conference, April 21-22, 2008, St. Louis, Missouri 37615, NCCC-134 Conference on Applied Commodity Price Analysis, Forecasting, and Market Risk Management. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  11. Sanders, Dwight R. & Irwin, Scott H. & Merrin, Robert, 2007. "Smart Money? The Forecasting Ability of CFTC Large Traders," 2007 Conference, April 16-17, 2007, Chicago, Illinois 37556, NCCC-134 Conference on Applied Commodity Price Analysis, Forecasting, and Market Risk Management. [Downloadable!]
  12. Shaun K. Roache, 2008. "Commodities and the Market Price of Risk," IMF Working Papers 08/221, International Monetary Fund. [Downloadable!]
  13. Shaun K. Roache & Alexander P. Attie, 2009. "Inflation Hedging for Long-Term Investors," IMF Working Papers 09/90, International Monetary Fund. [Downloadable!]
  14. Acharya, Ram N. & Gentle, Paul F. & Mishra, Ashok K. & Paudel, Krishna P., 2008. "Examining The Crb Index As An Indicator For U.S. Inflation," 2008 Annual Meeting, February 2-6, 2008, Dallas, Texas 6760, Southern Agricultural Economics Association. [Downloadable!]
  15. Davies, Phil & Minton, Bernadette & Schrand, Catherine, 2008. "Commodity Price Exposure and Ownerhsip Clienteles," Working Paper Series 2008-7, Ohio State University, Charles A. Dice Center for Research in Financial Economics. [Downloadable!]
  16. Bastourre, Diego, 2008. "Cambio fundamental o especulación financiera en los mercados de commodities? Un modelo con ajuste no lineal al equilibrio
    [Structural break or financial speculation in commodity markets? A multiva    ," MPRA Paper 9910, University Library of Munich, Germany. [Downloadable!]
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