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Forecasting crude oil prices in the COVID-19 era: Can machine learn better?

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  • Tian, Guangning
  • Peng, Yuchao
  • Meng, Yuhao

Abstract

Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, energy price predictability has worsened. We evaluate the effectiveness of the two machine learning methods of shrinkage and combination on the spot prices of crude oil before and during the COVID-19 epidemic. The results demonstrated that COVID-19 increased economic uncertainty and diminished the predictive capacity of numerous models. Shrinkage methods have always been regarded as having an excellent out-of-sample forecast performance. However, during the COVID period, the combination methods provide more accurate information than the shrinkage methods. The reason is that the outbreak of the epidemic has altered the correlation between specific predictors and crude oil prices, and shrinkage methods are incapable of identifying this change, resulting in the loss of information.

Suggested Citation

  • Tian, Guangning & Peng, Yuchao & Meng, Yuhao, 2023. "Forecasting crude oil prices in the COVID-19 era: Can machine learn better?," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 125(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:eneeco:v:125:y:2023:i:c:s0140988323002864
    DOI: 10.1016/j.eneco.2023.106788
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Extreme events; Oil price forecast; Out-of-sample forecasts; Shrinkage methods; Combination methods;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • C32 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Multiple or Simultaneous Equation Models; Multiple Variables - - - Time-Series Models; Dynamic Quantile Regressions; Dynamic Treatment Effect Models; Diffusion Processes; State Space Models
    • C52 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Econometric Modeling - - - Model Evaluation, Validation, and Selection
    • C53 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Econometric Modeling - - - Forecasting and Prediction Models; Simulation Methods
    • G17 - Financial Economics - - General Financial Markets - - - Financial Forecasting and Simulation
    • Q43 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Energy - - - Energy and the Macroeconomy
    • Q47 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Energy - - - Energy Forecasting

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