S&P Global Platts Seeks Revised U.S. Ethanol Pricing Method Amid Trader Concerns
by Jarrett Renshaw (Reuters) S&P Global Platts said on Thursday it was proposing changes to the assessment methodology behind its Chicago ethanol price, which is used broadly as a benchmark for supply deals around the country, after receiving feedback from traders.
The proposed change would expand the daily cash assessment to include barge, rail and truck deliveries at the Chicago pricing hub of Argo, not just storage tank transactions.
Ethanol producers had been complaining for months that the current system for benchmarking ethanol is vulnerable to manipulation – an issue of urgency as weak demand growth, a loss of export markets due to Chinese tariffs, and aggressive selling by global commodities giant Archer Daniels Midland Co pushed prices to 13-year lows. READ MORE