Modeling Fluctuations in the Global Demand for Commodities

Lutz Kilian and Xiaoqing Zhou

No 12357, CEPR Discussion Papers from C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers

Abstract: It is widely understood that the real price of globally traded commodities is determined by the forces of demand and supply. One of the main determinants of the real price of commodities is shifts in the demand for commodities associated with unexpected fluctuations in global real economic activity. There have been numerous proposals for quantifying global real economic activity. We discuss which criteria a measure of global real activity must satisfy to be useful for modeling commodity prices, we examine which of the many alternative measures in the literature are most suitable for applied work, and we explain why some popular measures are inappropriate for modeling commodity prices. Given these insights, we reexamine in detail the question of whether global real economic activity has declined since 2011 and by how much. Drawing on a range of new evidence, we show that the global commodity price boom of the 2000s appears to have been largely transitory. Our analysis has important implications for the design of structural models of commodity markets, for the analysis of the transmission of commodity price shocks to commodity-importing and exporting economies, and for commodity price forecasting.

Keywords: Commodity market; Demand; Real economic activity; Oil price; International business cycle; Leading indicators; Global economy (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: F44 Q11 Q31 Q41 Q43 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2017-10
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-agr and nep-int
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (20)

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Related works:
Journal Article: Modeling fluctuations in the global demand for commodities (2018)
Working Paper: Modeling Fluctuations in the Global Demand for Commodities (2017)
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