Chair: Lionel Barber, Editor, Financial Times

China National Cereals, Oils and Foodstuffs Corporation (COFCO) is emerging as one of the most important players in the global agribusiness market. Through its partnership with Noble and acquisition of Nidera, COFCO is now moving on to the world stage.

Fears of secular stagnation are gripping the world economy, fuelling moments of extreme volatility. How will commodities fare in a prolonged period of weak demand and low inflation? The panel will review the outlook for the global economy in 2015. 

Panel 

What will the commodities trading industry look by the end of the decade? Will a split emerge with some traders becoming more like mini banks, offering a range of hedging and other risk management services, while other players grow their physical footprint across the supply chain? How do the leaders of these businesses view the industry and what are the key trends shaping their markets? 

Panel 

Torbjörn Törnqvist, Chief Executive Officer, Gunvor Group

View from the Top  

Lionel Barber, editor of the Financial Times, interviews Mick Davis, the former chief executive of Xstrata, about his new investment vehicle X2 Resources, deal-making and fund raising and the outlook for commodity markets and the resources industry.

The sharp fall in oil prices witnessed over the past year was supposed to lift demand and help to alleviate an oversupplied market. While lower oil prices have provided a shot in the arm to the global economy, demand growth remains weak. Are there reasons to expect this to change and if so when and in what parts of the world?  Or will the usual benefits of lower prices – increased household disposable income, reduced industry input costs – be offset by tepid global growth, subsidy removals and the impact of a stronger US dollar.

Opening Remarks

Ian Taylor, President & Chief Executive Officer, Vitol

Panel

Marco Alverà, Chief Midstream Gas & Power Officer, eni spa

Ian Taylor, President & Chief Executive Officer, Vitol

Physical commodities pose a very different set of challenges for regulators than foreign exchange and equities. As new regulatory regimes take shape in Europe and the US, they risk being covered by the same rules. What are the unintended consequences of “one size fits all” regulatory reform for commodities? How should the industry educate and inform policymakers about the impact of these new rules? 

Panel 

Thomas Erickson, Vice President and Director of Legal Affairs, Bunge Product Lines

David MacLennan, President and Chief Executive Officer, Cargill    

Remarks

Dr Jeremy Leggett, Chairman, CarbonTracker & SolarAid, Founding Director, Solarcentury

The former head of BP talks to Neil Hume, Commodities Editor of the Financial Times, about the forces reshaping global energy markets, the outlook for oil prices and Genel Energy, the Kurdish oil explorer he leads.

As China, the engine of the oil market for the past decade, enters a less intensive stage of development, and technological advances unlock new resources in North America, has the global oil market entered a new era? Opec, led by its largest producer and effective leader Saudi Arabia, thinks so. It has refused to cut production and says it will let market forces balance supply and demand. A panel of market professionals discuss the changing energy landscape.

Panel

Jean-François Lambert, Managing Director, Global Head of Commodity & Structured Trade Finance, HSBC Bank plc

Jorge Montepeque, Global Editorial Director, Price Group, Platts

Although anxiety around climate issues and food security are growing, the cry for “sustainability” in commodity supply chains is regarded as a box ticking exercise by some in the sector. Uncoordinated efforts by companies are also not offering fundamental answers. However, there are some agriculture areas which seem to be making progress. The panel will discuss whether efforts in industries such as cocoa offer a way forward for other commodity sectors.

Panel

Nicko Debenham, Vice President Global Cocoa Sustainability and Managing Director of Biolands Group, Barry Callebaut AG

Lucas Simons, Chief Executive Officer, SCOPEinsight, NewForesight, Author Changing the food Game

How are big commodities traders placed to take advantage of the dislocations created by the recent volatility in oil prices? Will they need to tap new sources of funding as they adapt their businesses to exploit the rapidly changing energy landscape? What challenges do lower commodities prices present for the industry? The chief financial officers of leading trading houses discuss these themes and other issues.

Jeffrey Dellapina, Chief Financial Officer, Vitol

Jacques Erni, Chief Financial Officer, Gunvor

Christophe Salmon, Chief Financial Officer, EMEA and Chief Financial Officer elect, Trafigura Pte Ltd

Guillaume Vermersch, Group Chief Financial Officer, Mercuria

It is a quarter of century since Olam started business and in that time it has grown into one of the world’s biggest traders of cocoa, coffee and edible nuts, amongst others. To close this year’s Summit Sunny Verghese, the Co-Founder & CEO of Olam, will reflect on his experiences over the 25-years and look ahead to the future, examining the forces and challenges that will shape commodities trading and the global agribusiness.

Sunny Verghese, Co-Founder, Group MD and Chief Executive Officer, Olam International