Each day, the data onslaught that hits markets has an outsized impact on how stocks around the world move.

The list includes the rapidly growing field of genomics, a group of emerging countries that are outpacing the BRICs, and the revolutionary new way that retailers sell goods.

 

 

#1 THE U.S. ENERGY BOOM

 

Commodities garnered substantial attention this year after natural gas and coal prices collapsed amid an unusually warm winter. But forecasts for future energy generation in the U.S. remain surprisingly robust.

The U.S. Energy Information Administration projects that the country could halve its reliance on total energy imports under the best scenarios, and under higher consumption scenarios could lower imports from 24 percent today to 17 percent in 2035.