Using the Stocker Cattle Futures and Options Contracts to Manage Price Risks

Marketing,

Charting Analysis for Commodity Futures

Trying to ascertain what commodity futures\u27 prices are doing and will be doing a-t some time in the future has been the subject of much research and debate for many years. Two distinct factions have emerged from the controversy, the fundamentalists and the technicians. The fundamentalists rely heavily upon supply and demand analysis to determine commodity futures price movements. They try to weigh the mechanisms affecting the supply and demand relationship and determine which relation ship has the stronger force. That is, if the supply level for a commodity is projected to be up slightly (a downward pressure on price) but the export demand level has increased (a positive affect on price) with domestic demand levels relatively constant, what will the price movement in futures contracts for that commodity look like

Commodity options as an alternative to hedging live cattle

Commodity options are currently illegal in the United States but the Commodity Futures Trading Commission is trying to initiate a pilot trading program. The success of a trial trading period depends very heavily on the type of option market established, trading rules and regulations, and how well options perform as a hedging mechanism. This study addresses the details of buying and granting calls, puts, and doubles while discussing the major problem areas facing the commodity option market. A simulation model is developed to create a synthetic options market for live cattle futures to test if options can be an alternative to traditional hedging;The economic viability of options as hedges is the crucial problem facing the development of an option market. Research results from simulated synthetic options market show that, under certain mechanical filters, option hedges are superior and at least as good as futures hedges in terms of gross mean returns and variance. Double options appear to be inferior to futures hedges when premium values approach 20 percent or more of the striking price;Specific policy recommendations are made based on the simulation results regarding whether a pilot program is feasible and the particular make-up of the trading program

THE IMPACT OF RECLAMATION ON ACCEPTABLE STRIP MINING ROYALTY PAYMENTS

Resource /Energy Economics and Policy,

Historical basis data for live cattle, 1971-1980

Objectives; Methodology; Factors influencing the basis; Using basis tables; Appendix A; Appendix BResearch report containing live cattle basis information for 1971-1980, derived from historical cash price and future price data

Historical basis data for cotton, 1973-1982

Introduction; Methodology; Factors influencing the basis; Appendix AResearch report containing calculations of cotton basis information for use in developing hedging, production, merchandising, and storage decisions

Price risk management using natural gas futures contracts

Technical report containing information on hedging natural gas price risk with futures contracts