The importance of up-to-date information when dealing with the commodities market cannot be overstated. Commodities are different from stocks, for example, in that there’s no risk of takeovers and much less of a focus on any form of quarterly reports. However, certain commodities are much more susceptible to sudden fluctuations caused by a range of events which can be very hard to predict. Weather conditions, livestock diseases, major oil finds: these are just a few examples of the sort of things that can affect agriculture, livestock and energy commodity prices. While predicting such events is often impossible, keeping constant tabs on the news can help you to rapidly respond to information which could have an invigorating or enervating affect on a particular commodity.