Efficient crude oil pricing using a machine learning approach

Crude oil, a base for more than 6000 products that we use on a daily basis, accounts for 33% of global energy consumption. However, the outbreak and transmission of COVID-19 had significant implications for the entire value chain in the oil industry. The price crash and the fluctuations in price is known to have far reaching effect on global economies, with Nigeria hard. It has therefore become imperative to develop a tool for forecasting the price of crude oil in order to minimise the risks associated with volatility in oil prices and also be able to do proper planning. Hence, this article proposed a hybrid forecasting model involving a classical and machine learning techniques - autoregressive neural network, in determining the prices of crude oil. The monthly data used were obtained from the Central Bank of Nigeria website, spanning January 2006 to October 2020. Statistical efficiency was computed for the hybrid, and the models from which the proposed hybrid was built, using the percent relative efficiency. Analyses showed that the efficiency of the hybrid model, at 20 and 100 hidden neurons, was higher than that of the individual models, the latter being the best performing. The study recommends urgent diversification of the economy in order not for the nation to be plunged into a seemingly unending recession. Copyright © 2021, Society of Petroleum Engineers