Twitter under microscope - An HP Research Study

A study of social interactions within Twitter (via Snake Coffee), conducted by B. A. Huberman, D.M. Romero, and F. Wu (HP Labs) reveals that the driver of usage is a sparse and hidden network of connections underlying the “declared” set of friends and followers.

In a paper named Social networks that matter: Twitter under the microscope (PDF) the researchers investigated how relevant a list of “friends” is to members of the network. Practically, they were interested in finding out how many people each user communicates directly with through Twitter. They have defined user’s friend as a person whom the user directed at least two posts. By that the researchers were able to compare number of friends to number of followers.

Research Findings:

1. Saturation of delivered content:
The researchers expected that users who receive attention from many people (hold many followers) will post more often than users who receive little attention. Indeed, the total number of posts increases with both the number of followers and friends. However, as Figure shows, the number of total posts eventually saturates as a function of the number of followers. This implies that users with a large number of followers are not necessarily those with very large number of total posts.



On the other hand, the number of total posts does not saturate as a function of number of friends, as seen on Figure below.



The researchers concluded that in order to predict how active a Twitter user is, the number of friends is a more accurate signal than the number of his followers.

2. Social saturation:
The research shows (see Figure) that even though the number of
friends initially increases as the number of followees increases, after a while the number of friends saturates. This trend can be explained by the fact that the cost of “declaring” a new followee is very low compared to the cost of maintaining friends. Hence, the number of people a user actually communicates with eventually stops increasing while the number of followees can continue to grow indefinitely.



3. Reciprocity:
The research presents evidence to reciprocated attention. On average, 90 percent of a user’s friends reciprocate attention by being friends of the user as well (see figure).



Research Conclusions:
1. Twitter users have a very small number of friends compared to the number of followers and followees they declare. This implies the existence of two different networks: a very dense one made up of followers and followees, and a sparser and simpler network of actual friends. The latter proves to be a more influential network in driving Twitter usage since users with many actual friends tend to post more updates than users with few actual friends. On the other hand, users with many followers or followees post updates more infrequently than those with few followers or followees.




2. A link between any two people does not necessarily imply an interaction between them. In the case of Twitter, most of the links declared within Twitter were meaningless from an interaction point of view.

Sources: HP Twitter Study

About the authors
Bernardo A. Huberman is a Senior HP Fellow and Director of the Social Computing Lab at Hewlett–Packard Laboratories, Palo Alto, Calif.
Web: http://www.hpl.hp.com/research/idl/people/huberman/
E–mail: bernardo [dot] huberman [at] hp [dot] com
Daniel M. Romero is a graduate student at the Center for Applied Mathematics of Cornell University (Ithaca, N.Y.) and also a researcher in the Social Computing Lab of HP Laboratories.
E–mail: dmr239 [at] cornell [dot] edu

Measurement Metrics of Social Media

According to Wetpaint and the Altimeter Group, deep engagement with consumers through social media channels correlates to better financial performance. The ENGAGEMENTdb study (www.engagementdb.com) showed significant positive financial results for the companies who measured as having the greatest breadth and depth of social media engagement. These "Social Media Mavens" on average grew company revenues by 18 percent over the last 12 months, while the least engaged companies saw revenues sink 6 percent on average over the same time period.

The ENGAGEMENTdb study reviewed more than 10 discrete social media channels, including blogs, Facebook, Twitter, wikis, and discussion forums for each of the 100 most valuable brands as identified by the 2008 BusinessWeek/Interbrand Best Global Brands ranking. Activity in each channel was ranked for depth of interaction on measures that corresponded to that specific channel. Scores for overall brand engagement ranged from a high of 127 to a low of 1.

The top 10 ENGAGEMENTdb brands with their scores are:
1. Starbucks (127)
2. Dell (123)
3. eBay (115)
4. Google (105)
5. Microsoft (103)
6. Thomson Reuters (101)
7. Nike (100)
8. Amazon (88)
9. SAP (86)
10. Tie - Yahoo!/Intel (85)

Qualities of Success Companies that scored well in the study generally have dedicated teams, however small, active in the social media channels they utilize. The study found that the most successful teams evangelize social media across the entire organization to pull in a broad range of stakeholders. These companies view social media as an indispensable tool to help them achieve results, and their approach is conversational. This mode of operation differs from the approach of traditional communications and early corporate blog experimentation, which emphasizes messaging and talking points.

"This is the first study of this depth on the top global brands and we think the results provide a good guide for corporations and brand marketers in every industry," said Charlene Li, Founder, Altimeter Group. "The success stories we have uncovered provide a blueprint for companies making decisions about how to best apply their marketing and consumer relations resources." "The ENGAGEMENTdb study goes a long way towards validating the importance of social media for business," said Ben Elowitz, CEO of Wetpaint.

"The closer any company is to its customers, the better, and it's hard to argue with the ability for social media to create such proximity. In this day and age, companies should feel much more comfortable investing in social media -- the correlation to results is so clear." Four Quadrants of Engagement While each company in the study received a quantitative score, the ENGAGEMENTdb study revealed that companies fell into four specific categories in terms of their breadth and depth of investment in social media channels -- Mavens, Butterflies, Selectives, and Wallflowers.

Mavens -- brands that have made social media a core part of their go-to-market strategies and are very active in many channels; usually driven by dedicated teams assisted by company-wide awareness and participation.

Butterflies -- brands that recognize the need to be in many channels but have only met with real success in a subset of their activities; these companies are usually spread a bit too thin.

Selectives -- brands that focus on just a few channels and excel in those; these efforts are usually initiated by an internal evangelist.

Wallflowers -- brands present in only a few channels and very lightly in those; these brands are sitting on the sidelines and are wary of the risks. They are still trying to figure out the best next steps and investments in social media.

Source: www.wetpaint.com

Top Twenty Five Social Networking Sites – May 2009

According to comScore, Facebook totaled 70,278,000 unique visitors, up 97% from May 2008 to May 2009. MySpace audience shrank 5% over the same timeframe, falling to 70,255,000 unique visitors.




In April, MySpace visitors viewed 31.8 million ads, accounting for almost 47% of the total social network advertising space. Facebook was second, serving nearly 25 million ads and making up about 37% of the sector. In third place surprisingly was Tagged, which served 2.4 million ads, or 3.6% of publisher views.



eMarketer expects that the revenue gap will likely close in 2009-2010. MySpace entered into an advertising agreement with Google in 2006 that would pay the social network roughly $300 million a year, ending in June 2010. But TechCrunch reported that a new deal between Google and MySpace would be worth only $50 million to $75 million yearly, punching a big hole in the social network’s revenues.

Word of mouth (WOM) is the most trusted form of advertising in India

According to the Nielsen Global Online Consumer Survey, conducted by Nielsen Consumer Research company that provides insights on the preferences of internet consumers across the world, word of mouth is the most trusted form of advertising in India with 93% votes, followed by editorial content such as articles in newspaper with 87% votes and Brand websites with 78% votes. This comes at a time when internet advertising is booming, with newer brands associating themselves with internet and testing new waters.

“The main problem is that there are too many online users and just very few websites, this results in just the same ads on every website or a great clutter. So the ads don’t attract the audiences at all, hence not serving the purpose they should,” says Rammohan Sundaram, Founder of Networkplay.

Alok Kejariwal, CEO, games2win.com, feels that internet is at its nascent stage, so it will take some time for internet advertising to catch. “Any medium takes at least 20-30 years to develop. Further more, internet advertising intrudes personal space. It strikes when you are reading your personal mail or browsing through the net; it gets very irritating.”

According to Sundaram, there are many ads which are placed just to have an online presence. The advertisers don’t get into a deep research as to which site will suit the product, the placement of the ad.

But does this mean that online advertising is not on the right track? “There’s no major flaw in online advertising or its approach, it’s just that people find word of mouth more credible since it’s an unbiased and unpaid review. There’s no hidden motive behind it, which makes people trust it blindly. This difference between the trust on word of mouth and any form of advertising will remain forever,” says Mudit Khosla, Founding General Manager, Strategic Relations Group, Yatra.com
“The only way one can improve the trust is by involving the audiences. In my website we invite our audiences to write comments of services they have used.
This not only gives these audiences a platform to speak up but the others also get a chance to read unbiased opinions on the same website, “asserts Khosla.

Harish Bahl, MD, Quasar Media has a positive outlook, “According to me, the search results are very contradictory. A major portion of online advertising are the social websites, where audiences write blogs, connect and exchange information, or in other words, spread word of mouth. The Nielsen report saying that word of mouth is more trustworthy than online advertising proves that it’s a win-win situation for online advertising.”

“Internet is definitely growing fast and so will internet advertising, it just that products should be sold in a better way to gain the consumers’ trust,” believes Khosla.

Indian entertainment and media industry to reach Rs. 929.5 billion in the next 5 years

The Indian E&M industry is estimated to grow from Rs. 563.9 billion in 2008, at a CAGR of 10.5% for the next five years to reach Rs. 929.5 billion in 2013, says the PricewaterhouseCoopers’s Indian entertainment and media outlook 2009.

Over the next five years, television industry is projected to continue to be the major contributor to the overall industry revenue pie and is estimated to grow at a stable rate of 11.4% cumulatively, from an estimated Rs. 244.7 billion in 2008.

The overall television industry is projected to reach Rs. 420 billion by 2013. In the Television pie, distribution is projected to garner a share of 60% in 2013. On the other hand, television advertising industry is projected to command a share of 41.0% in 2013, having increased from a present share of 39.0% in the total ad industry pie. The relative share of the television content industry is expected to remain constant at 4%.

The Indian film industry is projected to grow at a CAGR of 11.6% over the next five years, reaching to Rs. 185 billion in 2013 from Rs. 107 billion in 2008. The relative shares of the film industry are expected to shift marginally from the traditional revenues to the new emerging revenues.

The Indian film print media industry is projected to grow by 5.6% over 2009-13, reaching to Rs. 213 billion in 2013 from Rs. 162 billion in 2008. The relative shares of newspaper publishing and magazine publishing are not expected to remain the same at around 87%, in favour of newspaper publishing. Magazine publishing is expected to grow at a higher rate of 6.5% as compared with newspaper publishing which is expected to grow at 5.6% for the next five years.

The radio advertising industry is projected to grow at a CAGR of 18% over 2009-13, reaching Rs. 19 billion in 2013 from Rs. 8.3 billion in 2008; more than double its present size. In terms of share of ad pie, it is projected that the radio advertising industry will be able to increase its share from 3.8% to 5.2% in the next five years.

The animation, gaming and VFX industry will continue to maintain its growth pace and is projected to grow at a CAGR of 22% to Rs. 42.5 billion in 2013 from Rs 15.6 billion. In the animation space, domestic demand will create the fillip in its growth, as well as contribution from international co-productions, in the film and television space.

The Indian gaming industry is projected to grow from an estimated size of Rs. 3.9 billion in 2008 to an estimated Rs. 16.3 billion by 2013; translating into a cumulative growth of 32.7% over the next five years . Mobile gaming will dominate the segment with 74% share , driven by the growth in the high end segment of the mobile users, new content by mobile operators and the availability of 3G spectrum that enables easy of play.

Online gaming will be the next highest contributor followed by console gaming. This will be fuelled by the growth of internet users and especially the growth of the target segment of users aged between 15-34 years. The growth in solo gaming will also be aided by falling cost of console prices and availability of local games.
Given the trends of increased internet usage, internet advertising is projected to grow by 32% over the next five years and reach an estimated Rs. 20 billion in 2013 from Rs. 5 billion, currently. The share of the online advertising too is projected to grow from 2.3% in 2008 to 5.5% in 2013 of the overall advertising pie.

The estimated size of the OOH industry is Rs. 15 billion, which is projected to become almost twice its current size in 2013 to 25 billion. Its share in the total ad pie is expected to go down marginally to 6.8% in 2013 from 6.9% in 2008.

The key growth driver for the music industry over the next five years will be digital music, and its share is expected to move from 16% in 2008 to 60% in 2013. Within digital music, mobile music will continue to increase its share and maintain its dominance.

Source: http://www.audiencematters.com/newsdetails.aspx?tbl_type=news&n_detail=2551&news_type=Media

Online advertising market to grow 27% by 2013: Study

Netscribes (India) Pvt. Ltd., a knowledge consulting solutions company, has launched the Online Advertising Market – India Report.

According to the report, the industry has grown at 74% per annum from 2004-08, driven by increasing awareness among advertisers and increase in internet penetration. Online ad networks have started gaining acceptance in the Indian market in the past 2-3 years.

Online advertising in India, largely dominated by search engines and portal, is fast gaining acceptance and offers an ever increasing user base. Increasing awareness among advertisers, low input costs for advertisers, and increase in Internet penetration are driving growth of the online medium and its horizontals.

The market is expected to witness only a 27% p.a. growth from 2008-2013. primarily due the massive advertising budget cuts in the industry.

The developing online advertising market in India is already witnessing stiff competition among domestic as well as international players. Niche and emerging nature coupled with low barriers to entry in this industry could lead to rise in competition. BFSI, Online publishers and IT/Telecom are the major revenue contributors for the online advertising industry in India. Acquisitions and investments by foreign players as well as private equity firms are providing a boost to this industry in the nascent stage.

Indian Commodities Trading Market

Turmoil in financial markets, slower growth in high-income countries, and rising inflation have all adversely affected growth prospects for developing countries over the near term. Most countries have shown impressive resilience in this turbulent environment, and growth for developing countries as a group is expected to moderate from 7.8% in 2007 to a still strong 6.5% in 2008. However, vulnerable countries that depend on foreign capital flows are likely to experience a sharper slowdown. Moreover, despite strong production growth at the aggregate level, higher food and energy prices have caused real incomes to decline, significantly increasing the hardships faced by the very poor, particularly in urban centers.

A recent article in the Wall Street Journal noted that if one were to examine the historical performance of the S&P 500, one would find that the stock market is trading at the same level at which it was doing so nine years ago. Commodities markets, on the other hand, have been in a bull trend. Some of the major drivers that have contributed in this stupendous growth of commodity markets globally are
- Increasing influence of Asian demand, particularly from rapidly industrializing China and India
- Increase in commodities prices in international markets as a result of demand growth, reinforced by tight supply capacities, tense geopolitical conditions (especially with respect to the oil market) and intense speculative activity
- With the rise in prices of crude oil, metals and minerals, commodity prices reached record historical levels in nominal terms in 2006, which increased by more than 30% between 2005 and 2006 (and by 80% from 2000 to 2006).
- Numerous developing countries rely on commodities for export revenues, and commodity production and trade provide employment for more than 2.5 billion people worldwide.
- The considerable rise in prices has had an impact on incomes of developing countries. It is estimated that extra revenues resulting from commodity exports were around 6.7 percentage points of GDP for oil-exporting countries and about 3 percentage points for countries exporting mining products.
- Increases in demand from developing countries stimulated by a particularly vigorous commodity consumption per unit of GDP compared to that of developed countries, faster economic growth, and increasing population
- "Globalization" of securities and commodities markets
- Baby boomers are in the middle of their peak savings years and have been one of the major causes of huge inflows of money into the stock market and into mutual funds.
- The increased use of food crops for production of bio-fuels is an important factor that led to large increases in the prices of vegetable oils and grains in 2007, which in turn contributed to an overall 15 percent increase in the index of agricultural prices and a 20 percent rise in food prices.
- The prices of metals have increased more than other commodity prices over the last four years, largely because of an especially strong demand in China.
- Shortages of equipment and skilled workers have significantly increased development costs, and ore grades are deteriorating.

The report on “Indian Commodities Trading Market” offers an in-depth analysis of the Global Commodities Trading Market vis-à-vis the Indian Commodities Trading Market. It discusses the overall structure of the Global Commodities Market as well as Indian Commodities Market from an insider perspective and provides a comprehensive study on macro and micro factors driving the growth of this market.

The report furnishes up-to-date facts and figures following meticulous observation with an aim to provide you with real insights into the commodity trading market as it stands today; the knowledge one needs to stand out and make informed decisions. The expanse of such insights into the past and present scenario percolates down to every known commodity currently traded. A conscious effort has been made to provide an overview of all there is to know and know of in the volatile market whilst a detailed product-wise and segment-wise is used in conjunction to expand. Taking into account that Price and Risk being the key drivers of the market, the report presents an exclusive section which maps price growth trend behaviour, factors triggering such behaviour, tracking relative performance of commodities , effects on the market players directly or indirectly using composite indexes from leading sources, the use of various hedging tools such as forwards and options and the relative performance in comparison, the implication and significance of the various regulatory bodies, commissions and statutory acts to highlight a few.

Table of Contents

Section I: Commodities Trading – An Overview

1. How Commodities Market Evolved – Historical Perspective

2. How Commodities Trading Market Works
2.1 Involved Parties
2.2 Types of Contracts
2.3 Participants in derivative contracts
2.4 Trading Techniques in Commodities Market
2.4.1 Ready Delivery Market
2.4.2 Specific Delivery Market
2.4.3 Futures Market
2.4.4 Auction Market
2.5 Requirement & Benefits of Commodity Derivatives

Section II: Commodities Market – An Analysis

1. Global Commodities Market – An Overview
1.1 Commodities Trading vis-à-vis Role of Investment Banks
1.1.1 Barclays Capital Commodities - Profile
1.1.2 BNP Paribas Commodity Futures – Profile
1.1.3 Citi Global Commodities – Profile
1.1.4 DB Commodity Services LLC - Profile
1.1.5 Goldman Sachs Commodities – Profile
1.1.6 J.P. Morgan’s Global Commodities Group – Profile
1.1.7 Merrill Lynch Global Commodities (MLCI) - Profile
1.1.8 UBS's Commodities Group
1.2 Energy Trading vis-à-vis Energy Trading In-house Divisions
1.2.1 RBS Sempra Commodities
1.2.2 Chevron’s Supply & Trading
1.2.3 LITASCO (LUKOIL International Trading and Supply Company)
1.2.4 Koch Supply & Trading
1.2.5 AEP Energy Services (Subsidiary of American Electric Power Company, Inc.)
1.2.6 Duke Energy Trading and Marketing (DETM)
1.2.7 Shell Trading (US) Company
1.2.8 Reliant Energy Securities & Commodities Trading Center
1.3 Commodity ETFs and ETNs
1.4 Commodity Trading vis-à-vis Sovereign Wealth Funds (SWFs)
1.4.1 History of SWFs
1.4.2 Driving Factors, Issues, Trends & Opportunities
1.4.3 Sources of Capital
1.4.4 How & where the money is invested – Market Size & Projections
1.4.5 Fund Rankings: Largest Funds by Assets under Management

2. Global Commodities Market Analysis
2.1 Global Commodities Market Size & Forecast
2.2 Commodity Market Profiles – Quick Points (Profile, Producers, Consumers, Largest Markets, Price Performance & Top Companies)
2.2.1 Aluminium Market
2.2.2 Cocoa Market
2.2.3 Coffee Market
2.2.4 Copper Market
2.2.5 Cotton Market
2.2.6 Gold Market
2.2.7 Nickel Market
2.3 Global Commodities Indexes – Performance Analysis
2.3.1 Dow Jones - AIG Commodity Indices
2.3.2 Merrill Lynch Commodity index eXtra (MLCX)
2.3.3 S&P GSCI™ Composite Index
2.3.4 Reuters/Jefferies-CRB® Indices

3. Issues, Trends & Opportunities
3.1 Impact of higher commodity prices
3.2 Movement of oil prices
3.3 Performance of agriculture commodities
3.4 Companies turn to top derivatives dealers for help in hedging
3.5 Carbon to be the biggest global commodity market by 2012
3.6 Renewed interest from investors
3.7 More sophisticated tools & platforms
3.8 Investment banks are major players
3.9 ETFs, changing the equation of Commodities Investment
3.10 China – Major Demand Driver of Global Commodities
3.11 Macro-Economic Driving Factors
3.12 Factors affecting pricing of base metals
3.12.1 Lead (75% y-o-y growth)
3.12.2 Tin (66% y-o-y growth)
3.12.3 Zinc (40% y-o-y decline)
3.12.4 Nickel (4% y-o-y decline)

Section III: Indian Commodities Trading Market

1. Indian Commodities Market – An Overview

2. Indian Commodities Market Size – An Analysis
2.1 MCX vs. SENSEX – A Comparative Analysis

3. Indian Commodities Market – Performance Analysis
3.1 Aluminium Market – Future Contract Value (Jan 07 – Jul 08)
3.2 Coffee Market – Robusta Futures Contract Value (Jan 07 – Aug 08)
3.3 Copper Market – Copper Futures Contract Value (Jan 07 – Jul 08)
3.5 Crude Oil Market – Crude Oil Futures Contract Value (Jan 07 - Aug 08)
3.6 Gold Market – Futures Contract Value (Jan 07 – Aug 08)
3.7 Chana (Chickpea) Market – Futures Contract Value (Jan 07 – May 08)
3.8 Nickel Market – Futures Contract Value (Jan 07 – Jul 08)
3.9 Zinc Market – Futures Contract Value (Jan 07 – Jul 08)
3.10 Lead Market – Price Performance (Jan 07 – Aug 08)
3.11 Cardamom Market – Futures Contract Value (Jan 07 – Jul 08)
3.12 Jeera (Cumin Seed) Market – Futures Contract Value (Jan 07 – Jul 08)
3.13 Lead Market – Futures Contract Value (Jan 07 – Jul 08)
3.14 Mentha Oil Market – Futures Contract Value (Jan 07 – Jul 08)
3.15 Natural Gas Market – Futures Contract Value (Jan 07 – Jul 08)

4. Government Regulations, Initiatives and Reforms
4.1 Setting up a Committee on Role of Futures Trading in 1993
4.2 Setting up of Forward Market Commission in 1953
4.3 Forward Contracts (Regulation) Act, 1952
4.4 Forward Contracts (Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2006
4.5 Forward Contracts (Regulation) Amendment Ordinance, 2008
4.6 Commodities Trading Tax
4.7 Import duty cut & export duty hike in Metals industry

5. Issues, Trends & Opportunities
5.1 Commodity Trends: Hurt by economic slowdown
5.2 Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX) launched currency futures trading
5.2 Hedging ban a slow political process to kill futures market
5.3 Commodity investment goes retail
5.4 Unresolved Issues and Future Prospects
5.5 Scrap now being considered a waste commodity
5.6 Commodity and Equity Markets have been moving in tandem
5.7 Indian Bt Cotton to hit market soon
5.8 Warehousing to take giant leap in India

List of Charts

Chart 1: Mode of Financing in Commodities Trading
Chart 2: Business Operations Model of a Trading Process in a Commodity Exchange
Chart 3: SWFs Market Projections (2007-2012)
Chart 4: Comparison of AUM of SWFs and Asset Managers, Private Equity and Hedge Funds ($ billions)
Chart 5: Sovereign Wealth Fund Deal Volume (1997-2007)
Chart 6: Sector-wise growth: Exchange trade of commodity derivatives by volume (03-06)
Chart 7: World’s leading Commodity Exchanges in developing countries – 2006 Contracts ($millions)
Chart 8: Major base metal commodity exchanges & emerging markets
Chart 9: Base Metal Price Trend – 2006 vs. Present Price
Chart 10: Cocoa Monthly Averages of Daily Prices (Oct 07- Oct 08)
Chart 11: ICO Indicator Prices - Annual & Monthly Averages (1998 to 2008)
Chart 12: Global Cotton Average Price Trend ("A" Index (cents/pound)) – 1988 -2008
Chart 13: Merrill Lynch Commodity index eXtra (MLCX) - Commodity Weightings
Chart 14: MLCX Weights as of January 2008
Chart 15: MLCXTR outperformance vs. SPGCCITR & DJAIGTR
Chart 16: Reuters/Jefferies CRB® Total Return Index: Jan 82 – Sep 08 (monthly close)
Chart 17: Forecast of China's Share of the Growth in Demand for Global Commodities- 2009
Chart 18: Types of Commodities Traded in India
Chart 19: MCX vs. SENSEX – Comparative Analysis (Jan 06-Sep 08)
Chart 20: India's Aluminium Futures Contract in Value (Rs. Crore) (Jan 07 – Jul 08)
Chart 21: India's Coffee Robusta Futures Contract in Value (Rs. Lakhs) (Jan 07 – Aug 08)
Chart 22: India's Copper Futures Contract in Value (Rs. Crore)
Chart 23: India's Crude Oil Futures Contract in Value (Rs. Crore)
Chart 24: India's Gold (1Kg) Futures Contract in Value (Rs. Crore)
Chart 25: India's Gold (100g) Futures contract in Value (Rs. Crore)
Chart 26: India's Chana (Chickpea) Futures Contract in Value (Rs. Crore)
Chart 27: India's Nickel Futures Contract in Value (Rs. Crore)
Chart 28: India's Zinc Futures Contract in Value (Rs. Crore)
Chart 29: India's Lead Futures Contract in Value (Rs. Crore)
Chart 30: India's Cardamom Futures Contract in Value (Rs. Crore)
Chart 31: India's Jeera (Cumin Seed) Futures Contract in Value (Rs. Lakhs)
Chart 32: India's Lead Futures Contract in Value (Rs. Crore)
Chart 33: India's Mentha Oil Futures Contract in Value (Rs. Crore)
Chart 34: India's Natural Gas Futures Contract in Value (Rs. Crore)

List of Tables

Table 1: The Global Economic Outlook (2006-2010)
Table 2: Major Global Commodity Exchanges
Table 3: Major Asian Commodity Exchanges
Table 4: Major European Commodity Exchanges
Table 5: Commodity Traders – List of top banks, Financial Institutions & other top companies
Table 6: Fund Rankings: Largest Funds by Assets under Management
Table 7: Global Commodity Prices – Monthly & Yearly Averages (Jan 06 - Sep 08)
Table 8: Commodity Forecast Nominal Prices (2007-2020)
Table 9: World Cocoa Market Estimates (in million metric tons) – 2002-2008
Table 10: ICO Indicator Prices - Annual & Monthly Averages (1998 to 2008)
Table 11: Global Cotton Average Price Trend ("A" Index (cents/pound)) – 1988 -2008
Table 12: Comparison of Commodity Indexes
Table 13: Dow Jones AIG Total Return Performance %
Table 14: Dow Jones AIG Excess Return Performance %
Table 15: Dow Jones AIG Yearly Returns (1990-2008)
Table 16: DJGI AIG Commodity Index - Commodity Weightings
Table 17: Merrill Lynch Commodity index eXtra (MLCX) - Commodity Weightings
Table 18: S&P GSCI™ Components and Dollar Weights (%)
Table 19: S&P GSCI™ Index Values
Table 20: Commodity Exchanges in India
Table 21: Trend of Commodities in National Commodity & Derivatives Exchange (Oct 08)
Table 22: Trend of Commodities in Multi Commodity Exchange of India (Oct 08)
Table 23: Trend of Metals in Multi Commodity Exchange of India (MCX) and National Commodity & Derivatives Exchange (NCDEX) (Oct 08)
Table 24: Trend of Oil Commodities traded in NYMEX (Oct 08)
Table 25: Trend of Metal commodities traded in NYMEX (Oct 08)

Pages: 186