For high value manufacturing, product variety is the single biggest driver of cost as it dictates the materialrequirements and inventory, which is typically over 80 percent of the total cost.
In addition, the Securities and Exchange Commission must expand its disclosure requirements to include material non-financial concerns of the type described above.
Speculators plug the gap when the hedging requirements of raw-material producers and buyers do not coincide, offering a counterparty for trades that might otherwise have no takers.
Packaging: While ensuring that the functional requirements of packaging are not compromised, what proportion of the total material is reused, recycled and renewable?