HK1181538A - Method of creating a stable index value, method of obtaining a stable price for fresh water and system - Google Patents

Description

Method for creating stable index value, method and system for obtaining stable fresh water price

The application is a divisional application of a patent application with the application date of 2008/20 and the application number of 200880103821.0 (international application number of PCT/IB 2008/053327) and the name of 'water index'.

Technical Field

Various methods and systems for investing in commodities are possible, and in particular, the methods and systems may determine a stable index price and allow use of the commodity as an investment by a financier, and allow the owner of the commodity to generate funds to develop the commodity.

Background

Many investors choose to invest in merchandise as a means to prevent inflation of the currency. To make the investment of goods safer, many financiers prefer to invest in indexed goods (indexed society). The index gives a composite representative price based on the prices of multiple suppliers. This eliminates the need for investors to invest in goods in the face of regional instability in the market.

In particular, fresh water is a very investment worthy commodity as an increasingly scarce important, irreplaceable commodity. In addition, capital investment is required to grow plants to obtain, purify, and distribute water. On the other hand, the water market is strongly influenced by regional factors, and the price varies greatly from place to place. The supply and demand of water may also temporarily vary very strongly due to short-term events. The price of water is $ 0.16 to $ 1.35/cubic meter in the united states, $ 1.80/cubic meter in germany, $ 0.50/cubic meter in finland, and $ 4.00/cubic meter for desalted water for saudi arabia. Therefore, in order to safely invest in water, the investor needs additional protection.

In many water-rich regions, water is not developed but wasted because, although it is a very valuable commodity, it has no market value and cannot be sold, developed or used as a loan guarantee in general. As a result, owners of water (e.g., local governments or land owners who own water resources) often opt to develop industries that provide rapid profits, even when these industries destroy valuable water resources. If the world water market were developed, water resources would become valuable assets useful for securing loans, and this would encourage improved water resource protection. In addition, developing a water market will make it possible for water owners to generate capital investments necessary to develop water resources.

The major problem in developing the water integrated market is related to the highly regulated nature of water as a commodity. The political and economic importance of water limits the potential for trade as a policy tool to reduce water deficit. National and local governments use, on the one hand, withdrawal fees (exit fees), fixed taxes and progressive taxes for water, and, on the other hand, subsidies for water to protect local water supplies or encourage water-intensive industries (e.g. agriculture). With a wide range of prices (e.g., $ 0.16-4.00/cubic meter), withdrawal fees (e.g., 0-70% in different provinces in australia), and tax rates (e.g., 10-50% of the progressive tax on agriculture and 30% of the subsidy subsidies in israel), no one has been able to establish a stable international market for water.

A situation has arisen in which, although the european court considers fresh Water to be a commodity, and although fresh Water is an important commodity that limits supply and is in increasing demand (and is therefore a desirable investment [ see, for example, the article "investing Water's Future" by William pentaland in forbs. com, 6.19.2008 ], and despite a huge demand for investment funds to develop Water resources [ see, for example, "World Water Forum Task Force on financial Water for all, Report1, by Paul VanHofwegen in World Water Council, 2006 ], no one has been able to establish a stable investment tool for Water. There is no comprehensive world market for water, like publicly traded commodities such as wheat, corn, oil or gold. There is no investment tool based on water prices (S & P using 50 company values). There is no water index or water futures or water as a public trade for goods at any major stock exchange.

Therefore, there is a widely recognized need for, and it would be highly advantageous to have, an investment tool for water based on a stable free market price.

Disclosure of Invention

Various methods and systems are possible that provide investment tools and investment methods. In particular, a system or method may facilitate investment in a physical object by determining a free market price for the physical object based on a virtual value of the physical object as reflected in a price of a free trading product.

An embodiment of an instrument for steady investment in goods (a financial instrument may include, for example, a bond, a voucher, a future, a stock, a basket of securities) may include collateral with valuable physical objects. The tool may further comprise a virtual value of the physical object calculated from the effect of the price of the physical object on the price of the product.

In embodiments of the investment instrument, the valuable real objects may be regulated such that the real object prices in the transactions are strongly influenced by non-market factors (e.g., government subsidy, exceptional taxes [ e.g., consumption taxes, fixed taxes, progressive taxes, and export taxes ] or controls), while the products may be commodities publicly traded at free market prices from which virtual prices are calculated.

In an embodiment of the investment instrument, the substance of value in the collateral may be fresh water.

In an embodiment of the investment instrument, the virtual value is calculated from one or more of agricultural commodities, manufacturing commodities, and fuels (e.g., biofuels).

In embodiments of the investment instrument, the virtual value of the physical object may further depend on one or more of the following factors: the amount of material in the product, the amount of material used to produce the product, and the amount of output produced by the product (e.g., the amount of energy output from burning the product, the amount of material produced as a by-product of using the product).

In embodiments of the investment instrument, the virtual value may further depend on a market weight of the product.

Embodiments of the investment method may include calculating an index value of the physical object. The index value may depend at least in part on a virtual value of the physical object. The virtual value may be calculated based on the effect of the physical value on the product price of the physical object.

Embodiments of the investment method may further comprise obtaining rights to a collateral containing the physical object based on the index value of the physical object.

In an embodiment of the investment method, the trading of real objects for which an exponential price is calculated may be regulated, whereas the product from which the virtual price is calculated may be a publicly traded good.

In an embodiment of the investment method, the substance for which the index price is calculated may be fresh water.

In an embodiment of the investment method, the virtual price is calculated from a product, which may be one or more of the following agricultural commodity, manufacturing commodity, and fuel.

In an embodiment of the investment method, the step of calculating the index value may use one or more of the following steps: the method includes evaluating an amount of a substance contained in the product, evaluating an amount of the substance used to produce the product, and evaluating an amount of the product output.

Embodiments of a method of trading a collateral may include determining a market value of the collateral based on an index value of a physical object of the collateral. The index value may be calculated using a formula that depends at least in part on the virtual value of the real object in the product.

Embodiments of the method of trading a collateral may further include marketizing rights to trade the collateral based on the market value of the collateral.

In an embodiment of the method of trading a collateral, the trading of physical objects of the collateral may be regulated, whereas the product used to calculate the virtual value may be a publicly traded good.

In an embodiment of the method of trading collateral, the physical object of the collateral may be fresh water.

In an embodiment of the method of trading collateral, the product may include one or more of agricultural commodities, manufacturing commodities, and fuel.

In embodiments of the method of trading collateral, the virtual value may further depend on one or more of the amount of the physical object in the product, the amount of the physical object used to produce the product, and the amount of output from the product.

An embodiment of a system for managing investments can include a memory configured to store a virtual value of a physical object, and a processor. The processor may be configured to calculate a virtual value of a physical object in at least one product and calculate an index value for a collateral. The index value of the physical object may depend in part on the virtual value of the physical object.

In an embodiment of the system for managing investment, the physical object may be a regulated commodity and the product may be a freely traded commodity.

In a system embodiment for managing investment, the substance may be fresh water.

In a system embodiment for managing investments, the products may include one or more of agricultural commodities, manufacturing commodities, and fuels.

In a system embodiment of managing investment, the memory may be further configured to store one or more of an amount of the physical object in the product, an amount of the physical object used to produce the product, and an amount of output from the product.

Term(s) for

The following terms used in the present application are consistent with their obvious meanings as understood by those skilled in the art. However, for purposes of further clarification in view of the subject matter of the present application, the following explanations, details and examples are given regarding how these terms are used or applied herein. It is to be understood that the following explanations, details, and examples are considered exemplary or representative, and are not to be considered exclusive or limiting. Of course, the terms discussed below are to be construed as broadly as possible, consistent with their ordinary meaning and with the discussion below.

Obtaining the right to the collateral implies receiving the right to profit from the collateral.

The right to trade a collateral on the market means that the right to profit from the collateral is transferred in return for some reward or benefit.

A product of a substance is an item or material that is associated with the use of the substance (e.g., the substance can be used in the production of the product or to bring the item to market). (As a result, the cost of a product can be affected by the cost of the physical object.

The physical object of the collateral is something like the general value that can be obtained from the collateral.

The virtual value of the real object is a value of the real object obtained by calculating an influence of the real object value on a product cost of the real object or an influence of the cost of the real object on a product cost as a substitute for the commodity.

Drawings

Various embodiments of methods and systems for investing are described herein, by way of example only, and with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is an illustration of an embodiment of an investment instrument;

FIG. 2 is a generalized flow diagram of a method of trading commodities;

FIG. 3 is an illustration of the calculation of a price index;

FIG. 4 is a generalized flow of an investment process.

Detailed Description

The principles and operation of a method and system for investing in according to various embodiments may be better understood with reference to the drawings and the accompanying description.

Referring now to the drawings, FIG. 1 is an illustration of a financial instrument investing in fresh water. Collateral 101 is a large quantity of fresh water owned by municipality 102 (e.g., municipality 102 may be the state of michigan, while collateral 101 is a lake). The physical presence of value in collateral 101 is fresh water. It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that although the water in the collateral 101 is of great value and readily available, the municipality 102 cannot sell the water in the collateral 101 at all due to legal restrictions, limitations on extraction rates, etc. However, municipalities 102 need to develop taxes and funds for projects (including projects that protect or facilitate use of collateral 101, such as sewage treatment plants or construction docks or construction pumping stations). Thus, municipality 102, through broker 120, has the right to trade water on the market and receive commissions and credit that can be guaranteed as a loan.

It is difficult to assess the value of water in collateral 101 because water transactions are regulated by government legislation, permits, official monopolies, taxes and subsidy benefits. Thus, water is not freely tradable and has an inconsistent price. Thus, the broker 120 uses a normalized index 130 that is used to calculate the index value 104 of water (e.g., $1.07/m shown in the figure)³). To calculate such value, broker 120 will calculate the value of water on a local basis and the virtual value of water in freely tradeable products that include water or utilize water in their production (examples of which will be described later). The index value is stored in a memory of the desktop computer and is calculated by a processor of the computer. Data for determining market share and product price is available over the internet for statistics (e.g., statistics may be obtained from trading exchanges with commodity markets, futures markets, securities [ e.g., in new york, london, tokyo)]The relevant web sites), and thus the data can be easily updated in real time. Alternatively, statistics (statistics) may be published periodicallyOr statistics published by government agencies.

Broker 120 submits vouchers 106 for water for collateral 101 (alternatively, other financial instruments can be used, such as bonds, shares, stocks, futures) and sells vouchers 106 based on index values 104. In the example of FIG. 1, since the exponent value 104 is $1.07/m³Broker 120 will be 1000m³The voucher 106 of (a) sells $1070 plus 2% of the commission. The investor 108 (who purchased the voucher 106) can deliver 1000m to the investor 108 by requesting the municipality 102³To redeem (redeem) the voucher 106 (the investor 108 is responsible for the cost of transportation and processing), or assuming that the value of the index 104 will rise, the investor 108 can hold the voucher 106 and then the investor 108 sell the voucher 106 to another investor (perhaps the broker 120) and make a profit (less any brokerage fee).

FIG. 2 is a generalized flow diagram of a method of trading merchandise. Brokers seek capital resources. For example, there is a large amount of fresh water available in the world and there is a demand for water, but there is not enough capital to develop or even protect this resource. Accordingly, the broker selects (block 211) to trade fresh water. The broker must now look up (locate) (block 213) fresh water ownership that can be obtained as collateral. In the example of fig. 2, a broker finds that brazil has many natural lakes with large amounts of available water. The area evaluated must then be defined (block 215). For example, water may be assessed according to the value of water in mexico and the midwest of the united states where water is in short supply and water from amazon can be easily carried, alternatively, water may be assessed according to the world price of water. Brokers select the index fresh water based on the international value of water (worldwide). Specifically, first, the broker establishes (block 217) a primary product of water on the world market, determines (block 219) a weight for each product, determines (block 220) a price for each product, calculates (block 221) a value of the physical object from each product, and calculates (block 222) an index value for the physical object based on a composite price of each product weighted by a weight factor, respectively. Examples of establishing (block 217) a product, deciding weights (block 219), determining prices (block 220), calculating value (block 221), and calculating index values (block 222) are shown below in FIG. 3 and the accompanying description.

The broker then divides (block 223) the collateral into a plurality of portions (which may be 1000m, for example)³A share of water, which may be traded with a share or other financial instrument known in the art), and a market value for each share is determined (block 225) based on the index value and the condition of the collateral (e.g., the price of the share may take into account the quality of the water in the lake or the region and the availability of the water). For example, if the index value is $ 1.07/cubic meter, each share of the lake includes 1000m³The market value of the share may be $ 1070. The broker then obtains (block 227) the rights to trade the collateral. For example, the broker obtains (block 227) the rights to the collateral by making a futures contract or supply contract with the municipality that owns the lake. The broker then sells (block 229) the share of the collateral to the investor at the market value plus a commission.

The index value is sometimes updated. Specifically, the algorithm periodically checks (block 235) whether it is time to update the collateral status (e.g., may be updated annually or monthly or whenever there is a need to expand or adjust the index), if "yes," the professional evaluator evaluates (block 236) the number, quality, and water availability of the collateral and adjusts the value of the collateral (block 237), and then looks for any new collateral necessities (block 213), adjusts the share vouchers (block 239) to determine valid assets include individual vouchers, and looks for new collateral items if needed (block 213). If it is not time to adjust the collateral ("no" in block 235), the algorithm checks (block 233) if it is time to update the weights (Wx and Wx)_i[ see, e.g., lines 362 and lines 363a-f, respectively, of FIG. 3]) (e.g., updates may be made monthly or even daily). If "yes," international trade based on the number of trades for various goods in the worldThe weights are determined by organized periodic reports (block 219). If "no," the algorithm checks (block 231) whether it is time to update the price of the product (see, e.g., lines 364a-f of FIG. 3). If "yes," the price of the product is determined (block 220). The price of the product may be updated on a daily, hourly, or real-time basis based on the price of the goods available on the internet or other resources. If "no," the transaction continues (e.g., the right to sell 229 the collateral).

Fig. 3 shows the results of an example of calculation of product weight and commodity value. In the example of fig. 3, eight products (water products) are selected 211. For various water products (A, Q, U, H, I, E, T and B: export, domestic, desalination, bottling, purification, food crops and biofuels), the product weight Wx (line 362) is part of the water market that the product represents. Then, for each product, one or more representative cases are selected. For each representative case, a case weight Wx is determined_i(lines 363 a-f), and determines case values x, respectively_i(rows 364 a-f).

In the example of fig. 3, the broker decides 219 by looking up trade data that 5% of the water trade is for export (Wa = 0.05), 50% becomes domestic consumption (Wq = 0.5), 9.95% comes from desalinization (Wu = 0.0995), 0.05% is bottled (Wh = 0.0005), 5% is decontaminated (Wi = 0.05), 20% is included as virtual water in food crops (Wt = 0.2) and 10% is included as virtual water in biofuel production Wb =0.1 in the selected region. Thus, in this example, the exponential price of water 369 depends in part on the virtual price of water (Wi + Wb = 30%).

Alternatively, the calculation of the index value may also include virtual water for manufacturing products such as paper (where water is used to suspend the wood colloid and for cleaning processes as well as finishing processes).

In view of the agricultural sector, water is used for the production of agricultural commodities, such as orange juice corn and the like. However, it is difficult to include irrigation water in the index calculation because: 1) most irrigation water is taken directly from natural resources (private wells/rivers/rain) and never calculated; 2) irrigation water is highly regulated and given subsidy benefits. Virtual water refers to the amount of water used for a product, but is not actually part of the product. For one kilogram of cereal crop 700-. Thus, purchasing an agricultural commodity essentially includes purchasing water. By including a virtual price for water in an agricultural commodity, a broker determines a price for water that is dependent on little government involvement in market power affecting the price. This enables the broker to establish a stable market based on the water index value 369.

A global market weighting factor W is determined 219 for each product, and more specifically, in the example of fig. 3, global market weighting factors Wa, Wq, Wu, Wh, Wi, Wt and Wb are calculated based on a fixed algorithm using available statistics (row 262) (in the example of fig. 3, market weighting is the market segments of export, domestic, desalinization, bottling, decontamination, food crops, and biofuels, respectively).

Note that in the embodiment of FIG. 3, Wt₁，Wt₂，Wt₃(row 263 e) (case weight of virtual water in each food crop) is based on the amount of water physically contained (in the amount of water component in the product) in the commodity, and not on the amount of water used to produce the commodity. Thus, for example, a particular market is included to encompass 1300m³In the trading of food crops for water. In this trade, there are 500,000 Kg of wheat (wheat has 60% water and the density of water is 1000Kg/m³Thus 500, 000Kg of wheat comprises 500 x 0.6=300m³Water of (d). Then, Wt₃(500 × 0.6)/1300= 0.23. Similarly, the total water market (sum of water traded in all selected water products) is 6500m³And the total water contained in the food crop traded was 1300m³. Thus, the market weight of the agricultural virtual water in the index value of water is the fraction Wt of the total water market contained in the food crop=1300/6500=0.2。

In the example of fig. 3, the virtual value 365a of water in the food crop is calculated as follows:

in new york, the commercial corn price is $ 400/ton; corn comprises 75% water and is used at 1500m per ton³The irrigation water of (a) is added,

t₁=400 x 0.75/1500=0.2 dollars/cubic meter is the virtual value of water in corn.

In New York, the commercial coffee price is $ 950 per ton, while coffee has 55% water and is used at 3500m per ton³Irrigation water. Thus:

t₂=950 × 0.55/3500=0.15 dollars/cubic meter is the virtual value of water in coffee.

In new york, the price of commodity wheat is $ 500/ton; wheat contains 60% water and is used at 1000m per ton³The irrigation water of (a) is added,

t₃=500 x 0.6/1000=0.3 dollars/cubic meter is the virtual value of water in wheat.

Consider that the weight of each commodity case (row 363 e) from a total traded agricultural commodity will give us the virtual value of water in the food crop, which is T, the price T ═ Wt₁*t₁+Wt₂*t₂+Wt₃*t₃=0.27 × $0.2+0.5 × $0.15+0.23 × $0.3=0.20 $/cubic meter 356 a. Thus, the virtual price of water in the agricultural food product T depends on the market weight of the various agricultural food products, the market price of the agricultural food product, and on the amount of water used in production.

By including the virtual value of water in the index formula, the broker calculates a representative overall value of water, which includes uncontrolled trading of water in other commodities (products).

Also in the example of fig. 3, for product demineralized water U, it is found in the selected evaluation region (world water trade)Yi) 647m³Is demineralized water, which is 9.95% of the total water transaction. Wu is used by industrial cities for 20% of world desalted water₁=0.20 and the representative case selected is the peyer of australia, the city in u₁$0.80 per cubic meter costs to produce desalinated water. In the world, 50% of the desalted water is used in vacation areas and islands Wu₂=0.50, and the representative case selected is the bermuda archipelago, which is reported in u₂$1.50 per cubic meter of the price produces desalinated water. In the world, Wu is the most common of desalted water used in oil export countries₃=0.30, and the representative case chosen is saudi arabia, which is in u₃$ 4.00/cubic meter of the price produced desalinated water. The weights are updated monthly and the representative prices weekly. Therefore, the value of desalinated water U = Wu₁*u₁+Wu₂*u₂+Wu₃*u₃=0.2 × $0.80+0.5 × $1.50+0.3 × $4.00=2.11 dollars per cubic meter 368.

The virtual water included in the biofuel is another part of the water trade. In the example of fig. 3, the combined market weight for the three biofuels is 10% of the total world trade for water, Wb = 0.1.

Many fuels, like biodiesel (produced from waste oil or from oil bearing plants, especially algae), biomethane (produced by anaerobic digestion of organic waste) and ethanol (produced by fermentation of multicellular waste or foodstuffs), contain water that cannot be assessed. Therefore, the water content in the fuel is not used to calculate the weighting factor Wb. Two examples of alternative bases for Wb are the total mass/volume of the biofuel, or the amount of water produced from the biofuel combustion. For liquid fuels (like biodiesel and ethanol), the total volume or mass of the biofuel can be used to calculate the weighting factor Wb. Alternatively, for any biofuel, and particularly for a gas (e.g., methane), when the volume and weight are not comparable to the water content or total volume of the liquid fuel, the mass of water produced by the combustion product can be used to calculate Wb (alternatively, Wb can be based on combustion by a fuel or a fuel for a biofuelEnergy from other combustion products, or constituents of fuel [ e.g. carbon ]]Multiplied by a scaling factor). Thus, the total market for biofuel comprises 650m³Which is considered to be a total water trade 6500m³10% of the total. The volume of ethanol sold was 390m³（Wb₁=390/650= 0.6) and the volume of biodiesel sold is 260m³（Wb₂=195/650= 0.3). In the example of FIG. 3, the amount of water market in biomethane (weight factor Wb) is calculated based on the output of methane combustion₃Based on the volume of the water market). Using combustion output to calculate Wb can facilitate comparisons between various biofuels with vastly different densities (alternatively, other comparison bases of energy production or carbon content can be used). Specifically, in the example of FIG. 3, the market includes 38800m³The trade of biomethane. At room temperature, the methane had a density of 0.67Kg/m³1 kg of biomethane is combusted to produce about 2.5 kg of water. Thus, 38800m is burned³Methane production 38800 x 0.67 x 2.5/1000=65m³The water of (2). Thus, Wb₃=65/650=0.1。

The virtual price of water in the biofuel is based on the water input for the fuel production. 1 ton of ethanol was produced from corn using 3600m³And the price of ethanol is $800 per ton, so the virtual value of water in ethanol is b₁= $800/3600=0.22 dollars per cubic meter. Similar calculations for biodiesel (where water is necessary to maintain the seaweed pond) give b₂Virtual water value of $ 0.15/cubic meter of water. In the example of fig. 3, the virtual value of water in biomethane is based on the amount of water used in production. The cost of methane is $ 3.00/cubic meter and yields a m³Using 7.0m of methane³So as to keep the methane tank running, the virtual value of water in biomethane is b₃=3.0/7.0=0.43 dollars/cubic meter. Therefore, the combined virtual value of water in biofuel B depends on the market weight of various products (total mass of fuel or water produced by combustion of fuel), and the amount of water used in fuel production B = Wb₁*b₁+Wb₂*b₂+Wb₃*b₃=0.6 × $0.22+0.3 × $0.15+0.1 × $0.43=0.22 $ per cubic meter 365 b.

Alternatively, CO exported from burning biofuel₂Or the amount of carbon content in the biofuel can be used as a common base for calculating the weighting factors for all biofuels.

When calculating the weights of the various products and the value of water in the various products and the type of product, the price is multiplied by the respective weights that give the combined value. In the example of fig. 3, and Wa a + Wq Q + Wu U + Wh H + Wi I + Wt T + Wb B =0.05 x 0.92+0.5 x 0.77+0.0995 x 2.11+0.0005 x 200+0.05 x 1.75+0.2 x 0.198+0.1 x 0.22=0.89 dollars per cubic meter 366. This price is adjusted by increasing the transportation cost N = $ 0.01/cubic meter (e.g., average cost of transporting water from a source to a distributor), and the exit cost D = $ 0.03/cubic meter (e.g., average production cost paid by a water importer to get water from other municipalities) and E = $ 0.015/cubic meter recovery (given the fact that some wastewater is recycled into the distribution system [ by filtration to groundwater/river inflow/or by designed water reuse ]) gives an adjusted price of $ 0.91/cubic meter. Finally, the final price is obtained by multiplying the adjusted price by a supply and demand factor Z =1.12 (adjusted price rise when there are many sellers and few buyers of water vouchers, and vice versa when the number of sellers exceeds the number of buyers) and a loss factor (1.05) that accounts for the price rise for the customers due to the loss of water between the source and the customers. Thus, the index value of water in the example of FIG. 3 is $ 1.07/cubic meter 369.

Using the index value 369 in fig. 3 (as described above), the company obtains a guarantee or water purchase contract for the water value in accordance with the index value. The company assigns contracts in the form of water baskets of securities (water basestock) based on the water index value. Companies can participate in agreements with financial institutions or investment companies-distributing a basket of securities to their customers and obtaining appropriate commissions and guarantees from the trade.

Alternatively, the virtual value of the real object can also be calculated based on the cost of the commodity for which there is a product of the real object as a substitute for the commodity. For example, the virtual price of water may be calculated from the price of gasoline. Since ethanol is a substitute for gasoline and since a major portion of the cost of ethanol production is water, the virtual price of water can be calculated based on the price of gasoline. For example, since the price of gasoline is $ 700/ton, and ethanol is a substitute for gasoline, and since 3600m can be used from this³And grown corn to produce 1 ton of ethanol, the virtual value of water based on the price of gasoline is $700/3600= B = $ 0.19/cubic meter.

Fig. 4 is a flow chart illustrating an investment method. First the investor selects (block 470) the commodity (e.g., fresh water) to invest in, and then looks (block 472) for brokerages selling stocks or other financial instruments (e.g., bonds, vouchers, futures, stocks, a basket of securities). The investor then uses a commodity index value (e.g., index value 369 as described in fig. 3 and the accompanying description) calculated by the broker (block 474). Based on the calculated index value, the investor decides (block 476) whether to invest. If "yes," the investor purchases (block 478) shares from the broker. If "no," the investor selects (block 470) other goods to invest.

In summary, while various exemplary embodiments have been described in considerable detail, variations, modifications, and other embodiments are possible. Therefore, the spirit and scope of the appended claims should not be limited to the description of the embodiments contained herein.

Claims (33)

1. A method for creating a stable index value for investing in fresh water, the method comprising the steps of:

assessing an amount of fresh water physically contained in at least one product, the at least one product not being water;

storing the quantity on a computer;

evaluating an amount of fresh water used to produce the at least one product and storing the amount of fresh water used to produce the at least one product on a computer;

causing a computer to obtain and store data regarding a current price of the at least one product;

determining, using a computer, a current index value of fresh water based on a current price of the at least one product and based on at least one of an amount of the fresh water physically contained in the at least one product and an amount of fresh water used to produce the at least one product,

thereby creating a stable index value representing a stable price of fresh water.

2. A method for obtaining a stable price of fresh water, the method comprising the steps of:

assessing an amount of fresh water physically contained in at least one commodity, the at least one commodity not being water;

storing the quantity on a computer;

causing a computer to acquire and store data regarding a current price of the at least one item;

determining, using a computer, a current index value of fresh water based on a current price of the at least one commodity and based on an amount of the fresh water physically contained in the at least one commodity,

thereby creating a stable index value representing a stable price of fresh water.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

evaluating an amount of fresh water used to produce the at least one commodity;

storing the amount of fresh water used to produce the at least one commodity; and

a current index is also determined using a computer based on the amount of fresh water used to produce the at least one commodity.

4. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

a current index value of the fresh water is also calculated based on the market weight of each of the at least one commodity.

5. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

using at least one food crop as the at least one commodity.

6. A method for creating a stable index value for investing in fresh water, the method comprising the steps of:

assessing an amount of fresh water physically contained in at least one product, the at least one product not being water;

storing the amount of fresh water physically contained on a memory of a computer;

evaluating an amount of fresh water used to produce at least one product;

storing the amount of fresh water for production on a memory of a computer;

causing a computer to obtain data regarding a current price of at least one product; and

determining the index value of fresh water by calculating the index value using a computer based on the current price and based on at least one of:

(i) the amount of the fresh water physically contained; and

(ii) the amount of said fresh water used for production.

7. The method of claim 6, further comprising: the data about the current price is updated in real time.

8. A method for obtaining a stable price of fresh water, the method comprising the steps of:

assessing an amount of fresh water used to produce at least one product, the at least one product not being water;

storing the quantity on a computer;

causing a computer to obtain and store data regarding a current price of the at least one product;

determining, using a computer, a current index value of fresh water based on a current price of the at least one commodity and based on an amount of the fresh water used to produce the at least one product,

thereby creating a stable index value representing a stable price of fresh water.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

assessing the amount of fresh water physically contained in the at least one product;

storing an amount of fresh water physically contained in the at least one product; and

a current index is also determined using a computer based on the amount of fresh water physically contained in the at least one product.

10. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

a current index value of the fresh water is also calculated based on the market weight of each of the at least one product.

11. A system for creating a stable price of fresh water from a price of a commodity, the system comprising:

a) a system computer having a processor, wherein the processor is configured to,

the system computer is configured to receive data identifying a transaction product containing fresh water and to receive data identifying a transaction product utilizing water in production;

the system computer is configured to communicate in real-time with a computer associated with an exchange of goods, the computer associated with the exchange of goods providing current price data for a plurality of transaction products;

the system computer is configured to acquire current price data of each trading product utilizing water in production and each trading product containing fresh water from the current price data of the plurality of trading products;

the processor is configured to calculate a current index value of fresh water based on a current price of each transaction product, based on an amount of the fresh water making up the each transaction product, and based on an amount of the water used to produce the each transaction product, the system computer thereby being configured to create a current water index value representing a stable price of fresh water from current price data for the plurality of transaction products; and

b) a memory of the system computer configured to store the current water index value.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the system computer is further configured to receive updatable data regarding a market weight for each traded product, and wherein the processor is further configured to calculate the current index value of the fresh water further based on the market weight for each traded product.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the updatable data regarding the market weights is for a geographic region.

14. The system of claim 11, further comprising a financial instrument configured to use a stable price of fresh water as the commodity, the financial instrument associated with a collateral comprising a source of fresh water.

15. The system of claim 11, wherein the processor is configured to calculate the current water index value for the respective trading product by performing mathematical operations on the amount of fresh water making up the respective trading product, the amount of water used to produce the respective trading product, and the price of the respective trading product.

16. The system of claim 11, wherein the memory is further configured to store at least one of: an amount of the fresh water comprising at least one product, an amount of the water used to produce the at least one product, and a price of the at least one product.

17. The system of claim 11, wherein the memory is further configured to store at least one of: the amount of the fresh water comprising at least one product and the amount of the water used to produce the at least one product.

18. The system of claim 11, wherein at least one of the transaction products is a publicly-traded good.

19. The system of claim 11, wherein at least one of the trading products comprises at least one agricultural commodity.

20. The system of claim 11, wherein the transaction product comprises: at least one commodity selected from agricultural commodities, manufacturing commodities, and fuels.

21. The system of claim 11, wherein the index value is further dependent on an amount of output from the respective trading product and an amount of a component of the respective trading product.

22. The system of claim 11, wherein the amount of water used to produce each trading product does not include water that is part of each trading product.

23. The system of claim 11, further comprising a financial instrument having a quantity of fresh water listed on a face thereof such that a transaction of the financial instrument is dependent on a price calculated from the quantity of fresh water and the current water index value calculated from the processor.

24. The system of claim 23, wherein the financial instrument is a tangible voucher.

25. The system of claim 24, further comprising a computer having a display for displaying the current index value to at least one of: a holder of the tangible credential, a seller of the tangible credential, and a trader of the tangible credential.

26. A method of using an investment instrument for investing in fresh water, the method comprising the steps of:

measuring at least one of: (i) an amount of fresh water physically contained in at least one product, the at least one product not being water; and (ii) an amount of fresh water for producing at least one product, the at least one product not being water;

causing a computer to obtain data of a current price of a product having fresh water as a physical component or utilizing fresh water in production, the data being updated;

determining the index value of fresh water by calculating the index value using a computer processor based on a price of the at least one product and based on at least one of:

(iii) an amount of said fresh water physically contained in said at least one product; and

(iv) an amount of the fresh water used to produce the at least one product;

determining a price of financial instruments that can be deployed for the particular amount of fresh water by calculating, using a computer processor, a price from the index value of fresh water and the particular amount of fresh water; and

issuing said financial instruments, each of said financial instruments identifying on a face thereof said particular amount of fresh water.

27. The method of claim 26, further comprising: displaying the index value on a display of a computer.

28. The method of claim 26, further comprising:

determining the index value for the fresh water by calculating an index value using a computer processor based on an amount of the fresh water comprising at least one product, an amount of the fresh water used to produce the at least one product, and based on a price of the at least one product.

29. The method of claim 26, further comprising: the data is updated in real time via the internet.

30. A system for calculating a value of a collateral, the system comprising:

a) a memory associated with the computer, the memory configured to store an index value of fresh water, the fresh water being a collateral, an

b) A processor configured to calculate the index value of the fresh water based on a value of the fresh water in at least one product,

the processor is configured to calculate the index value based on at least one of:

(i) the amount of fresh water comprising at least one product; and

(ii) an amount of fresh water used to produce the at least one product;

the memory is further configured to store at least one of an amount of fresh water in the at least one product and an amount of fresh water used to produce the at least one product;

the network connection is configured to provide current data regarding the price of at least one product having or utilizing fresh water to make up or produce the at least one product, wherein the network connection is configured to provide the market value of the at least one product in real time.

31. A computer system comprising a computer-readable storage medium having computer-readable code embodied thereon, the computer-readable code for trading collateral, the computer system comprising:

a) program code for determining a market value of at least a portion of the collateral based on an index value of a physical object of the collateral; and

b) program code for calculating the index value based on a price of at least one product and based on at least one of:

(i) the amount of fresh water comprising the at least one product; and

(ii) an amount of fresh water used to produce the at least one product,

c) a memory associated with the computer, the memory configured to store the exponent value, an

d) A processor configured to calculate the index value of the fresh water based on the program code.

32. A system for stabilizing an investment tool for water, the system comprising:

a) a computer having a processor and a memory;

b) a piece of fresh water, and

c) a financial instrument comprising a voucher, each voucher having a volume of fresh water identified on a face thereof, the volume of fresh water identified on the face of the voucher being redeemable by a holder/owner of the voucher from a holder of the body of water, the price of the voucher being determined by the volume of fresh water and an index value of fresh water indicated on the face of the voucher, the index value being calculated by a processor of a computer based on at least one of the following and based on the price of the at least one product:

(i) the amount of said fresh water that makes up at least one product; and

(ii) an amount of fresh water used to produce the at least one product;

the sheet of fresh water serves as a collateral for the volume of fresh water in each token,

the memory stores the exponent value, an

A display of the computer that displays the index value.

33. The system of claim 32, further comprising:

a computer connected to the international communications network, the computer being configured to obtain data on the current price of a product comprising or produced from fresh water and to allow said data to be updated in real time.