The role of commodities and commodity exchanges as instruments of protection against inflation

U zadnjih nekoliko godina sve veći je interes za ulaganjem u robe na robnim burzama. Na robnim burzama trguje se robom koja nije fizički prisutna već se trguje sa ugovorima koji predstavljaju ekvivalent tih roba. Roba je dobro koje zadovoljava određenu čovjekovu potrebu, a ulaganje u robu poput zlata može donijeti određenu zaštitu od inflacije. Poduzeća kao i njihovi kupci osjećaju posljedice inflacije. Kako poduzećima rastu cijene troškova tako i kupci imaju manju platežnu moć. Poduzeća trebaju osmisliti dobar plan kako ne izgubiti kupce jer kod povećanja cijena troškova oni se preliju na kupce što dovodi do smanjene kupovine. Inflacija je u posljednjih nekoliko godina porasla, a razni su uzroci povećanja inflacije poput pandemije, geopolitičkih sukoba, klimatskih promjena i porasta cijena roba poput nafte i plina. Inflacija se definira kao povećanje opće razne cijena roba i usluga, a ona dovodi do smanjenja kupovne moći građana. S inflacijom novac vrijedi sve manje a cijene roba i usluga ubrzano rastu. Oni koji se žele osigurati prinose ulažu u određene investicijske fondove, štede u bankama, ulažu u nekretnine, kriptovalute ili u robu poput zlata. Ulagači se nadaju kako će ih ulaganje u robe dovesti do porasta vrijednosti. Cilj rada je pojasniti kako inflacija utječe na cijene roba i usluga, kako funkcionira zaštita od inflacije te kako inflacija utječe na poduzeća.In the last few years, there has been an increasing interest in investing in commodities on commodity exchanges. Commodities that are not physically present are traded on commodity exchanges, but are traded with contracts that represent the equivalent of these commodities. A commodity is a good that satisfies a specific human need, and investing in commodities like gold can provide some protection against inflation. Companies as well as their customers feel the effects of inflation. As cost prices for companies rise, customers also have less purchasing power. Companies need to come up with a good plan so as not to lose customers, because when prices increase, costs are passed on to customers, which leads to reduced purchases. Inflation has increased in the last few years, and there are various causes of the increase in inflation, such as the pandemic, geopolitical conflicts, climate change and the rise in the prices of goods such as oil and gas. Inflation is defined as an increase in general prices of various goods and services, and it leads to a decrease in the purchasing power of citizens. With inflation, money is worth less and the prices of goods and services are rising rapidly. Those who want to secure returns invest in certain investment funds, save in banks, invest in real estate, cryptocurrencies or commodities such as gold. Investors hope that investing in commodities will lead them to increase in value. The aim of the work is to explain how inflation affects the prices of goods and services, how inflation protection works and how inflation affects companies