Sources & Research
Reviewed October 7, 2026.
Our Source Hierarchy
We prefer primary and authoritative sources whenever they are available. The exact sources used should depend on the topic, country and market being discussed.
- FAO — agriculture, food and commodity markets.
- USDA — agricultural production, trade and market information.
- International Energy Agency — energy markets and demand.
- World Bank — commodity prices and global economic conditions.
- IMF — inflation, currencies and macroeconomic conditions.
- Eurostat — European prices, trade, labour and economic statistics.
- International Labour Organization — labour and wage data.
- UN Trade and Development — international trade, shipping and development.
- OECD — economic indicators, productivity and policy data.
How Sources Are Used
Source selection is topic-specific. A coffee article may rely on agricultural and commodity data, while a housing article may rely on national housing, construction, mortgage and interest-rate statistics. We do not claim that every listed institution is a source for every article.
Source Dates Matter
Market information becomes stale. For this reason, topic pages display a review date and should be updated when material conditions change.
Editorial Research
WhyIsItExpensive Research synthesizes evidence into plain-English explanations. The site does not present itself as a financial adviser, investment service or official statistical authority.