Cited by 1,477Market Dynamics and VolatilityEnergy, Environment, and Transportation PoliciesEconomics of Agriculture and Food Markets

The DOI matches its Crossref record; 55 of the 64 references it cites were found in a registry or an index; 1 of the 43 sources its claims cite were checked for support.

THE ROLE OF INVENTORIES AND SPECULATIVE TRADING IN THE GLOBAL MARKET FOR CRUDE OIL

Open access
Kilian, Lutz, Murphy, Daniel P.·2014·Journal of Applied Econometrics

Abstract

SUMMARY We develop a structural model of the global market for crude oil that for the first time explicitly allows for shocks to the speculative demand for oil as well as shocks to flow demand and flow supply. The speculative component of the real price of oil is identified with the help of data on oil inventories. Our estimates rule out explanations of the 2003–2008 oil price surge based on unexpectedly diminishing oil supplies and based on speculative trading. Instead, this surge was caused by unexpected increases in world oil consumption driven by the global business cycle. There is evidence, however, that speculative demand shifts played an important role during earlier oil price shock episodes including 1979, 1986 and 1990. Our analysis implies that additional regulation of oil markets would not have prevented the 2003–2008 oil price surge. We also show that, even after accounting for the role of inventories in smoothing oil consumption, our estimate of the short‐run price elasticity of oil demand is much higher than traditional estimates from dynamic models that do not account for for the endogeneity of the price of oil. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Overview

Integrity signals

Registry

Crossref · 10.1002/jae.2322

Cites

55 of 55 references verified0 citation errors · 0 not checkable

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Nothing to recompute.

Verification

Claims the paper makes

58 No basis given · 56 Own interpretation · 49 Own result · 19 Own method · 18 Sources not found · 12 No full text of the sources · 7 Not checked yet · 1 Couldn’t confirm · accuracy not yet measured

Show all 149 claims

  • It may state two separate claims as one. 52
  • Probably not a substantial claim. 21
  • The quote only partly states this claim. 2
71 of 71
  • The authors state this as an assumption.

    Arbitrage between the spot and futures markets for crude oil holds.

    “under the maintained assumption of arbitrage between spot and futures markets”
    “there is an arbitrage condition linking the oil futures market and the spot market for crude oil.”
  • The authors state this as an assumption.

    The oil refining industry satisfies assumptions such that the short-run price elasticity of gasoline demand is about as high as the short-run price elasticity of oil demand.

    “under reasonable assumptions about the oil refining industry the short-run price elasticity of gasoline demand is about as high as the short-run price elasticity of oil demand.”
  • The authors state this as an assumption.

    The impact elasticity of oil demand in use is weakly negative on average over the sample.

    “A natural additional identifying assumption is that the impact elasticity of oil demand in use, Use t , must be weakly negative on average over the sample.”
  • The authors state this as an assumption.

    The impact price elasticity of oil demand is lower in magnitude than the corresponding long-run price elasticity of oil demand.

    “It is reasonable to presume that the impact price elasticity of oil demand is lower in magnitude than the corresponding long-run price elasticity of oil demand”
  • The authors state this as an assumption.

    Under the standard assumption of arbitrage between the futures and spot markets for oil, the absence of speculation in the spot market rules out speculation in oil futures markets.

    “under the standard assumption of arbitrage between the futures and spot markets for oil maintained by proponents of the financial speculation hypothesis”
  • The authors state this as an assumption.

    In the model, OPEC holding back oil production in anticipation of rising oil prices is observationally equivalent to a negative flow supply shock.

    “In our model, OPEC holding back oil production in anticipation of rising oil prices would be observationally equivalent to a negative flow supply shock.”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    The price elasticity of oil supply is near zero in the short run.

    “While there is little doubt that the price elasticity of oil supply is near zero in the short run”
  • The authors state this as an assumption.

    The speculative demand shock is a composite of expectations shocks related to shifts in uncertainty and to the anticipation of rising oil demand and/or falling oil supplies.

    “Given that this shock is a composite of expectations shocks related to shifts in uncertainty and to the anticipation of rising oil demand and/or falling oil supplies, it is impossible to determine the sign of these responses ex ante beyond the impact period.”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    Standard structural VAR models of the market for crude oil implicitly equate oil production with oil consumption and ignore the role of oil inventories.

    “Standard structural VAR models of the market for crude oil implicitly equate oil production with oil consumption and ignore the role of oil inventories.”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    Typical estimates of the oil demand elasticity in the literature have been based on models that equate the percent change in quantity with the percent change in the production of crude oil, ignoring the existence of oil inventories.

    “Second, typical estimates of the oil demand elasticity in the literature have been based on models that equate the percent change in quantity with the percent change in the production of crude oil, ignoring the existence of oil inventories.”
  • The authors state this as an assumption.

    The structural shocks in the model are mutually uncorrelated.

    “Our analysis is based on the premise that these shocks are mutually uncorrelated, but allows multiple shocks to occur at the same time.”
  • The authors state this as an assumption.

    The real price of oil is covariance stationary for the historical decompositions.

    “historical decompositions for the real price of oil rely on the assumption of covariance stationarity and would not be valid in the presence of unit roots.”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    Oil below ground (reserves) is inaccessible in the short run and not available for consumption smoothing.

    “Unlike above-ground oil inventories that can be drawn down at short notice, oil below the ground (also known as reserves) is inaccessible in the short run and not available for consumption smoothing.”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    No reliable time series data exist on the quantity of oil below the ground.

    “We do not utilize data for reserves because no reliable time series data exist on the quantity of oil below the ground and because reserves data are not required for our identification.”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    In practice, it will often take years for significant production increases.

    “In practice, it will often take years for significant production increases.”
  • The authors state this as an assumption.

    Prior to the shock, the change in crude oil inventories is equal to its mean ΔS.

    “prior to the shock, the change in crude oil inventories is equal to its mean ΔS; which is observable.”
16 of 16

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Metadata

Authors
Kilian, L., & Murphy, D. P.
Affiliations
University of Michigan (US)
Corresponding author
Kilian, Lutz
Venue
Journal of Applied Econometrics
Publisher
Wiley
Published
2013-04-10
Volume
29
Issue
3
Pages
454-478
ISSN
  • 0883-7252 (ISSN-L)
  • 1099-1255
OpenAlex
W2113983529
Cited by
1,472
References
64
Citations by year
2026: 130 · 2025: 122 · 2024: 110 · 2023: 110 · 2022: 110 · 2021: 132 · 2020: 113 · 2019: 89 · 2018: 99 · 2017: 102 · 2016: 88 · 2015: 69 · 2014: 70 · 2013: 64
FWCI
205.60
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Journal of Applied Econometrics (publishedVersion)
  • RePEc: Research Papers in Economics (submittedVersion)
  • SSRN Electronic Journal (submittedVersion)
  • Deep Blue (University of Michigan) (submittedVersion)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Economics, Econometrics and Finance › Economics and Econometrics › Market Dynamics and Volatility
  • Physical Sciences › Energy › Renewable Energy, Sustainability and the Environment › Energy, Environment, and Transportation Policies
  • Social Sciences › Economics, Econometrics and Finance › Economics and Econometrics › Economics of Agriculture and Food Markets
Keywords
crude oil market, oil inventories, speculative trading, oil price shocks, oil demand elasticity, oil supply shocks, oil consumption, oil market regulation

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