How does WTP choose the sources for its commodity prices?
Every commodity price in WTP comes from a source we have checked first. The main test is simple: can we trace the price back to the market? A price without a clear origin is not a good basis for your negotiations.
How we find a source- Find out what the material really is. We check the name the market uses for it and where it is produced.
- List who knows this market. This gives us parties that trade in the market themselves, or that do market research on it.
- Check each candidate. Can we use their data? Do they have the price we need? Can we trace how they get it, or do others in the market refer to them?
- Traceable: The USDA (US Department of Agriculture) reports market prices with direct funding from the US government. It is fully clear how it collects its data.
- Not traceable: Websites that list prices for everything from metals to chemicals to food are often the first ones you find online. They usually name no source, so you cannot tell what the price is based on.
We prefer a market or spot price: what the material trades at today. Calculating an FOB or CIF price ourselves from trade data comes later in that order.
Sources with a validation layer, such as Intratec or Polymerupdate, give more than a price. They also state the exact specification of the material. Our rule of thumb: the more detailed the specification, the better.
In WTPRead the description under the resource name. It names the region, the price basis and the specification of the series.
Tips:
- Compare that specification with what you actually buy. The closer the match, the more useful the price is in a supplier discussion.
- Found a different price online? Check whether that site names its source before you compare it with WTP.
- An FOB price and a CIF price include different costs. Check the price basis before you compare two series.
For what FOB and CIF include, please see 'What do the Incoterms FOB, CIF and EXW mean in a commodity price?'