Another global commodity, present in our daily lives, without an established price index or futures contract, with a unique supply chain: Tea. How does Tea reach our tables? Where does tea come from? How does it trade? And how is the tea market navigating climate change, ever lower prices and changes in demand? Indeed, which nations drink the most tea? Our guest is Jem McDowell, Vice-President of Trading  and Universal Commodities (Tea) Trading Inc. Jem is based in the US but has had a global career in trading tea.

For producers, refiners, processors & miners building a risk management and trading capability is moving from a value-add to a ‘must have’. However, building such a capability is a challenge, requiring a clear plan to win, constant communication and the right operation model and systems. Over the last 5 years some transformations have succeeded, others remain stalled. What are the key accelerators and derailers in such a process? What are the people implications – both the required leadership and the skill-sets needed. Our guest is Talis Bennett-Verschure, Director of Commodity and Energy Trading at the management consultancy Baringa, who has been at the forefront of helping organizations build this vital capability.

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Ten percent of the global tanker fleet has gone dark and the number is growing. What is the Dark Fleet? Why does it exist and why is it growing? Who is using the fleet and who owns it? What are the risks for the market, the environment and traders? And what does a shadow fleet mean for world security and criminal enterprises? Our guest is David Tannenbaum, Director at Blackstone Compliance  Services, a sanctions and anti -money laundering advisory group, providing support to financial institutions and commodity trades alike and a Partner at Polestar Global, a sanctions and maritime intelligence firm where he runs the threat intelligence group.

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A brief final episode of 2024. Host Paul Chapman reflects on some of the key themes of the year, offers his deepest thanks to listeners, guests and his colleagues at HC Group (www.hcgroup.global) and Enco Insights (www.encoinsights.com) and looks at the coming year and goals for the podcast. 

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A still timely discussion as the Federal Reserve comes under pressure to decrease rates... How low interest rates since the financial crisis have caused inequality, populism and inflation. Christmas re-release of one of host Paul Chapman's favorite discussions. 

Award-winning, financial journalist and historian Edward Chancellor join us to discuss interest rates and the impact on the commodities sector. Interest rates – the price of money and time – have been unnaturally low since the global financial crisis. This has led to a profound impact on finance and society. Global corporates found financial engineering more “profitable” than focusing on products and operations. Assets inflated and inequality widened. In the commodities world, the cost of carry and cost of finance, was essentially zero. Energy tech plays were awash in money and valuations sky high. Rates are now rising and those same engineered corporates are becoming zombies. China risks economic Armageddon as the global carry trade ends. Assets prices are falling and financially stressed commodity traders, now face higher rates. Edward argues higher rates will return the world to profitable growth and risk allocation unless political will to reverse rates wins…

The skillsets required to be in a commodity trading team have always been evolving. However, that evolution is accelerating in the wake of new technologies and especially AI. In this episode we trace the changing roles and skills traders have needed over the last century and what the future holds as AI becomes ever more involved in the day to day activities of a trading desk. What are the skillsets of the past and their future? Are they fundamentally different? How is AI already affecting teams?  And how will AI shape the teams, careers and opportunities within the sector?  Our guest is Daf Davies, long time commodity trader, and founder and CEO of Deus AI – a consulting firm focused on preparing companies for the commodity trading future.

Will nuclear fusion change the world and if so how far away is it? What is fusion power? What are the technological, regulatory and financial developments that are accelerating our path to it? What has changed that has meant private companies are now racing to develop it alongside governments? And what will it mean for fusion power to be deployed at scale. Our guest is Jay Brister, an independent investor and consultant with over 40 years experience in the nuclear sector who has focused on fusion over the last five years

Award winning journalist and author, Vince Beiser, joins us again to talk about his new book; Power Metal: The Race for the Resources that will Shape the Future. The energy transition consumes immense amounts of critical metals and minerals. What are the trade-offs being made in mining and processing them? How and where is recycling of these metals ongoing? What are the human stories and impacts behind this enormous industry and what might the solutions be to make the transition more sustainable and achievable? Vince’s book is out and available in all good book stores and published by Penguin Random House.

Weather is a key driver in energy markets – from trading in the day ahead markets to weather events that can disrupt operations for months on end. Accurate forecasting has always been an edge. New technologies are making some aspects of forecasting ever more accurate. At the same time, climate change is making extreme events more frequent and significant. What keeps a meteorologist up at night? Why do energy traders employ meteorologists? How is technology changing the profession? Our guest is Matt Lanza, who has over 20 year’s experience working on trading floors as a meteorologist .

In the wake of the energy crisis and the demands of the energy transition, the EU has enacted a series of regulations, and considering more, in the European energy markets. These will bring changes to how power, carbon and gas markets operate and some proposals under consideration could have profound effects. What are these changes? What is the impact on how markets operate and the opportunity for participants?  And are we entering a period of re-regulation and intervention after the steady march of liberalization over the past 25 years? To discuss this and more is our guest Bart Verest, the Lead Partner at E&C Consultants, an international consultancy focused on energy procurement and markets with their headquarters in Belgium. Bart is an expert in energy markets and energy contracts.