The present paper examines the price discovery process and volatility spillovers in Indian spot-futures commodity markets through Johansen cointegration, Vector Error Correction Model (VECM) and the bivariate EGARCH model. The study uses four futures and spot indices of the Multi Commodity Exchange of India (MCX), representing relevant sectors like agriculture (MCXAGRI), energy (MCXENERGY), metal (MCXMETAL), and the composite index of metals, energy and agrocommodities (MCXCOMDEX). Johansen cointegration test confirms the presence of long-term equilibrium relationships between the futures price and its underlying spot price of the commodity markets. The VECM shows that commodity spot markets of MCXCOMDEX, MCXAGRI, MCXENERGY and MCXMETAL play a dominant role and serve as effective price discovery vehicle, implying that there is a flow of information from spot to futures commodity markets. Besides, the bivariate EGARCH model indicates that although bidirectional volatility spillover persists, the volatility spillovers from spot to the futures market are dominant in case of all MCX commodity markets.

The evolution of the organized commodity futures market in India commenced in 1875 with the setting up of the Bombay Cotton Trade Association Ltd. Following widespread discontent among leading cotton mill owners and merchants over the functioning of the Bombay Cotton Trade Association, a separate association, Bombay Cotton Exchange Ltd., was constituted in 1983. Futures trading in oilseeds originated with the setting up of the Gujarati Vyapari Mandali in 1900, which carried out futures trading in groundnuts, castor seeds and cotton. The Calcutta Hessian Exchange Ltd. and the East India Jute Association Ltd. were set up in 1919 and 1927 respectively for futures trade in raw jute. In 1921, futures in cotton were organized in Mumbai under the auspices of East India Cotton Association (EICA). Before the Second World War broke out in 1939, several futures markets in oilseeds were functioning in the states of Gujarat and Punjab. Futures markets in Bullion began in Mumbai in 1920, and later, similar markets were established in Rajkot, Jaipur, Jamnagar, Kanpur, Delhi and Kolkata. In due course, several other exchanges were established in the country, facilitating trade in diverse commodities such as pepper, turmeric, potato, sugar and jaggery.

Behavioral Finance Journal, Asset Pricing, Contingent States, Capital Asset Pricing Model, Prospect Theory, Financial Literature, Bullish Market, Asymmetric Evaluation, Capital Asset Pricing Model, French Market, Political Crises, Asian Financial Crisis.