New Venue for New York Courses

This week’s London Metal Exchange courses in New York were held in Euromoney’s office, conveniently located on Sixth Avenue and 44th Street, on the site of the old New York Hippodrome. 

Euromoney has worked with the LME for over three years delivering their popular introductory level courses around the world, and it was a new departure to accommodate the courses in-house.  The professional setting, welcoming staff and high standard of facilities were well received by participants.  The group was relatively small, but had the advantage that attendees enjoyed plenty of personal attention. Just three stayed until the end of the options course.

“Very helpful to understand LME’s role and terminology”  Orion Resource Partners

“Great courses – provide in-depth knowledge on hedging and options in metal markets.  The trainer was very good, easy to understand and explained subject matter well.” Magliner Inc

The next sessions will take place in London (17-19 July) and Dubai (18-20 September).  The next New York course is scheduled for 11-13 December.  Check out Upcoming Courses for a full schedule of 2018 dates and links to secure your place.

Another sell-out

Last week’s London Metal Exchange  courses, run in partnership with Euromoney Learning Solutions, were at capacity again.  We had representatives of recyclers, smelters, specialized manufacturers, physical traders, banks, regulators and service companies, with interests in all the base metals and steel.  The courses provide an excellent networking opportunity as well as a practical introduction to the workings of the exchange and using the listed instruments to manage metal price risk.

“Met all of my initial expectations prior to coming in.  Left with more than anticipated.  Firmly believe that the course was useful & believe I will be applying most, if not all, concepts to my daily work.”
Garantibank International

“Very good.  Happy that the trainer spent the time during break to go through certain things “
Arrow Metals

“Straight to practical application.  Great approach on concepts and theory.”
Banco Modal

The next sessions will take place in New York (12-14 June 2018), London (17-19 July) and Dubai (18-20 September).  Check out Upcoming Courses for a full schedule of 2018 dates and links to secure your place.  Don’t miss out on your preferred location and dates by delaying.

Who said “Three’s a crowd”?

Three seemed to be the perfect number last week when EJJ International combined forces with Bethan Davies, an independent legal consultant, and Catherine Lang-Anderson of Allen & Overy, to deliver training on “Understanding Trade Finance”.

Initial discussions with the client and IFF, the global financial training provider, highlighted that EJJ International alone could not fulfil the client’s requirements.  We leveraged our extensive network of professionals, finding the right legal minds to provide the details we were lacking.

The format was well received by the client.

“Great teaching.  Clear and concise materials.”

“It was lively and presenters were interactive”.

The complementary skill sets of the three trainers meant several aspects of issues could be explored during the question and answer sessions.

Commodity Derivatives Training in April

  • Do commodity price movements affect your company’s performance?
  • Are you an investor seeking to gain exposure to an asset class with the double benefits of portfolio diversification and return enhancement?
  • Are you a lawyer, banker or accountant with commodity sector clients?
  • Are you in London 24-26 April 2018?

Our three day commodity derivative training course gives an in-depth overview of all the main commodity sectors: metals, oil and gas, and agricultural products, plus techniques for stabilising cash flows, collateralising finance and monetising market views.

“I needed to understand the world of commodities and the course it has been fantastic for that” Caixa Bank

“Comprehensive topics suitable for a wide audience. Facilitator has great depth of knowledge and expertise in the subject.” BHP Billiton

Click here to book your place.

Off to a flying start

2018 started with a capacity crowd for the first London Metal Exchange  courses, run in partnership with Euromoney Learning Solutions.  High numbers meant a second parallel session for the ever popular “Introduction to the LME” day was needed.  A key benefit of these courses is the availability of trainers to answer questions throughout the day, and numbers have to be capped to ensure this valued aspect of the training is preserved.  Delegates are encouraged to book early to ensure a place on their preferred dates.

“Very clear, good examples, right rhythm”, Thomson Reuters

“Great speaker, excellent capacity to explain technical topics with simple language”, Bank of China International

“I finally understand options from practical point-of-view.  I had many questions which were all answered during the course” Heneken

The next London course (10-12 April 2018) is filling fast.   Dubai (1-3 May 2018) and New York (12-14 June 2018) are also open for bookings.  Check out Upcoming Courses for a full schedule of 2018 dates and links to secure your place.

Harnessing technology for cost-effective training

Does video conferencing work for delivering training courses?  The last two days proved it does.

We worked with a small business unit with employees in London and Chicago.  For two London afternoons and Chicago mornings, a small group gathered in London and connected to Chicago via a video link.  The sophisticated system mirrored the presentation materials, and each group could see the other.  Of course there were momentary glitches, and some hilarious moments when a piece of paper held to the camera substituted for a white-board.

The limited timezone overlap forced the training to be split into a series of half-day sessions.  All the participants remarked on how useful this was as:
(1) it was less disruptive to their day-to-day jobs, and
(2) they were refreshed and able to absorb more of the second session.

While nothing beats face-to-face training, the video format proved to be a cost-effective method to train small numbers in disparate locations.

 

Diversity in the desert

Last week the final London Metal Exchange took place in Dubai.  At a first glance the attendee list promised an interesting mix of nationalities.  Once everyone arrived, we realised hardly anyone lived in their country of birth.  The Jordanian resident was from Iraq, while the Jordanian currently works in Kuwait.  The international mix brought an extra dimension to questions and discussions.

The group almost broke the record for the fastest completion of the futures day, but mastering the languages of carries, borrowing and lending, slowed the pace and made for a punctual completion at 5pm.

Options were a new subject for all attendees, and the engineer made light work of the complex concepts.  By the end of the day, there were smiles all around and a real sense of achievement.

“Great course to understand the LME”, Novelis

“It was a lovely course.  Instructor was amazing and has an ability to deliver the information so easily”, Gulf Cable & Electrical Industries

Check out Upcoming Courses for a full schedule of 2018 dates and links to book your place.  The first course in London (30-Jan to 1-Feb 2018) is filling fast.  The next Dubai course is scheduled for 1-3 May 2018.

 

 

 

Reaching for the sky

At the beginning of December, a select group spent five days learning about commodity markets and derivatives during Euromoney Learning Solutions‘ London School of Commodity Price Risk Management.  The course included a visit to watch an open outcry trading session at the London Metal Exchange, which made the classroom theory come alive.

As a pre-Christmas treat, the group enjoyed a trip on the London Eye which put quite a different perspective on the usual London views.

One or two found the course content challenging, but the small group size helped them break through their ceiling and they comfortably tackled the more advanced topics towards the end of the course.

“Nice balance between commodities and derivatives instruments.   Trainer able to explain structures in a simple manner and make it relevant to different attendees.  Interesting case studies / examples”, Sberbank

In 2018, this course will run in a shorter three day format on the following dates:
London,  24-26 April 2018
Singapore, 5-7 September 2018
London, 14-16 November 2018

Click here to book your place.

 

 

 

Turning lights on

On Wednesday the lights on the Christmas tree at the Rockefeller Center were switched on with all the razzamatazz that only New York can do.  A few blocks away at the London Metal Exchange introductory course other lights were being turned on as participants delved into the inner workings of the exchange, and practised using futures and options.  One by one the puzzled faces relaxed and smiled once the concepts were understood and each became more confident.  Instead of an ice rink, golden angels and the Radio City Rockettes, there were aluminium and zinc processors, physical traders, a financial player and even an animal feed supplements manufacturer.

 

“Very well presented and laid out”, GARMCO

“Very informative.  Good level for someone who has a basic knowledge of financial models with experience working in metals”, Constellium

“Great course.  Going over examples useful”, Traxys

There are still some places available for Dubai (12-14 Dec), and the next London course (30-Jan to 1-Feb 2018) is booking fast.  Check out Upcoming Courses for a full schedule of dates and links to book your place.

My heart is in Havana

Just as “Havana”  by Camila Cabello was topping the charts around the world, a select group of Cuban bankers took part in the “Understanding Commodity Derivatives” course organised by the Banco Central de Cuba with the assistance of the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office in Havana.  The course was the second in a series of courses facilitated by GBRW Learning, and the first to be simultaneously translated into Spanish, with course materials provided in both languages.
The intensely practical focus of the course was appreciated as many participants’ prior experience had been largely theoretical.  The sessions concentrated on the commodities most relevant to Cuba, and illustrated techniques for managing price risk, stabilising the value of cargoes used as collateral, and dealing with the inevitable delays and physical format variations.  Those who completed the course should also be well equipped to adapt these techniques to other asset classes.

A minor confusion between honey (miel) and iron ore (hierro) made us laugh.  We all know what we would prefer to have on toast in the morning.