DTN FastRack FAQ

Price Gathering

DTN FAstRAcks provides the edge you need for buying or selling fuel in today’s highly competitive global markets. It offers the most accurate and comprehensive information available to help you assess your positions throughout the day and find  pportunities to boost your margins.

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Below, we answer some of the most common questions people ask.

Does DTN create the pricing in DTN FastRack Data?

No. We don’t create the pricing information; we gather it from the actual suppliers. It is the same wholesale pricing data that the suppliers share with their customers or release publicly. Since DTN FastRacks prices are informational only, pricing is not
released until it is effective.

Does DTN have any control over how prices are set?

No, we don’t since we aren’t creating the information; the suppliers have that control. We gather the information to share with our customers.

How does DTN FastRacks get its prices?

More than 80 suppliers provide pricing files directly for use in DTN FastRacks. However, some companies can’t share published pricing data in this way. For those companies, we collect the data through our extensive wholesale network and electronically process approximately 98% of it.

What criteria does DTN FastRacks use for posting supplier prices?

Suppliers should:

• Maintain a steady product supply
• Sell to anyone that meets their customer terms of agreement
• Supply DTN FastRacks pricing information daily or on an agreed-upon schedule
• Offer prices that are not customer specific, not a contract price, and not re-posted on
  another or multiple suppliers’ rack prices

How does DTN use its wholesale network to get prices?

We collect pricing data from our wholesale network in multiple ways, but the preferred method is electronically pulling wholesale pricing from jobbers who use DTN services. We also gather data from faxes, emails, and recorded supplier messages, as well as verbally. This information is then manually entered into our applications.

Do DTN FastRacks reports include contract prices?

No. Contract prices are prices the supplier sends to specific customers with whom they have a contract, and are therefore not available to all potential customers. DTN FastRacks data comes from wholesale prices open to all potential customers.

What is the difference between branded and unbranded?

Branded products can only be sold at locations under a specific supplier’s name or brand. Unbranded products are sold at independent locations, where a customer can purchase unbranded product from an unbranded supplier.

What are summaries?

DTN FastRacks defines summaries as all pricing that appears on a report that is not submitted by a supplier. Instead, summaries are calculated prices that have undergone our stringent quality control process and analysis. A summary can be an average of
two or more prices, or it can be a single price, like the rack high or low.

How are averages calculated?

Averages are calculated based on either wholesale branded, unbranded, or all suppliers’ posted prices. Only “updated” prices are included. An updated price is one where we have received a current daily price notification. We eliminate all prices marked to “exclude” from the summaries. Finally, the information is processed to create an average or single price at the time the report is generated.

What is the difference between branded and unbranded?

Branded products can only be sold at locations under a specific supplier’s name or brand. Unbranded products are sold at independent locations, where a customer can purchase unbranded product from an unbranded supplier.

Why are some prices marked to exclude?

Exclude indicates that a price appears to be unreasonably high or low when compared to other prices, and therefore was not included in DTN FastRacks summaries. Prices to be excluded are marked during our quality control procedures, which are performed multiple times throughout the day.

Are averages calculated as gross or net prices?

The summaries you receive typically match the price set up of your DTN FastRacks report. If you have selected gross prices for your report, most summaries will reflect gross prices. Likewise, if you choose net prices for your report, most summaries will reflect net prices. Gross prices show the price before prompt payment discounts are applied. Net prices show the price after prompt payment discounts are applied.

What kinds of averages are available through DTN FastRacks summaries?

We have fixed-average summaries that are calculated at a specific time. All other summaries are recalculated whenever a report is generated.