In the commodity space, many ETFs struggle to attract volume right out of the gate. But are low-volume ETFs always a bad idea?

New research on the effect speculators have on the ag markets and a classic paper on momentum investing join our selection of papers every serious commodities investor should read.

K. Geert Rouwenhorst and Kurt Nelson of SummerHaven Index Management, LLC explain how to go beyond passive in commodities exposure.

The final word on inflation wasn't uttered by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics last week when the agency reported a 0.3 percent uptick in the Consumer Price Index. This morning, the BLS announced wholesale prices for finished goods inched up 0.2 percent in July, the first increase since March. The July rise in the CPI was also its first in four months.

Wholesale prices for finished goods have risen 2.8 percent since June last year, according to figures released this morning by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The increase in the Producer Price Index for Finished Goods (PPI-FG) actually represents a fourth consecutive month in which the rate of price inflation has slowed. In March, the year-over-year increase in PPI-FG peaked at 6.0 percent, and was followed in April and May with increases of 5.5 and 5.3 percent, respectively.

After Tuesday's losses in the U.S. crude oil market, bullish sentiment was bolstered by a key industry report about the supply of Texas Tea. Overnight trade in WTI crude was buoyed by the American Petroleum Institute's estimates that indicated crude inventories falling much more than analysts' expectations.