The J.P. Morgan Center for Commodities & Energy Management produces academic and applied research for the broad commodity practitioner audience. Our Center sponsors an annual Research Symposium in partnership with our global Research Council and Industry expert partners.

New Directions In Commodities Research Symposium

The symposium's objective is to bring together global thought leaders and prominent commodities stakeholders from academia and industry to discuss their critical thinking and new research related to commodities. The focus of research is on the real-world relevance of commodities research with academic rigor.

Sessions are limited to outstanding research and comprise competitively selected and solicited papers, as well as industry research leaders’ presentations and industry panel discussions. In addition to traditional paper presentation sessions, we will have poster presentation sessions to showcase quality papers.

Our industry keynote will be Dr. Scott Nelson, the Georgia Athletic Association Professor of History at UGA and author of Oceans of Grain, which compares the 200-year conflict over westward expansion in the United States to conflicts over Russian expansion into the grain corridors of the Black Sea. He will present “Parallels from the Past in Ukraine: What Historic Grain Pathways Tell Us About Geopolitical Instability.”

2023 Symposium Presentations     2023 Symposium Agenda     2022 Symposium Agenda

Logistics

The 2023 symposium will take place at the CU Denver Business School, Jake Jabs Event Center August 14-15, 2023, from 8:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. In-person registration includes lunches, dinner, drinks, and networking. A tentative agenda for the symposium will be released in June 2023.

For professionals attending the symposium from out of state, discounted hotel rates are available through the University of Colorado. You can access the list of hotels and rates here: CU Preferred Hotel Program.

Sponsorships

Show your company’s support to the next generation of researchers by sponsoring the New Directions Symposium!  Multiple opportunities are available, including speaking opportunities.  Contact Tom Brady, Executive Director (tom.brady@ucdenver.edu), for more information and to discuss the next steps.

Sponsorship Opportunities

Academic & Applied Research

Research from J.P. Morgan Endowed Chair and Research Director, Dr. Jian Yang

Dr. Jian Yang is an internationally recognized scholar and one of the most prolific authors in finance over the past 50 years, based on core finance journal publications, and is one of 15 commodities-friendly professors in the world. He serves on the editorial boards of the Journal of Futures Markets as well as the Journal of Commodities Markets. Dr. Jian Yang also utilizes his academic research to provide applied research insights on practical problems through interviews with business media. Here is a showcase of his most recent research in commodities.  

“Return and Volatility Transmission between Chinese and International Oil Futures Markets: A First Look,” Journal of Futures Markets, forthcoming, 2020.
“The Impact of Crude Oil Inventory Announcements on Prices: Evidence from Derivatives Markets,” Journal of Futures Markets, January 2018.
“Are There Exploitable Trends in Commodity Futures Prices?” Journal of Banking and Finance, September 2016.

Research Council Members

Our Research Council Members are an integral part of the J.P. Morgan Center for Commodities & Energy Management.  Our Research Council is made up of leading Academic professionals and industry practitioners from around the world and across the commodity sectors. These experts provide valuable input for future commodity research direction and focus for the J.P. Morgan Center and also assist in selecting prime research for our annual Research Symposium.