Anyone who has spent any time in the military or in college for sure knows what "guts poker" is, and maybe everyone else does as well. Guts poker is what the name implies. It is a game that requires mostly guts and minimal skills. You're either "all in" or you're "out."The old crop corn and soybean markets are starting to remind me of guts poker. The bears are all in on the down side, believing that record yields in 2013 will finally resolve the world's tight supply problem. The bulls are all in on the up side, betting there is a very good chance that someone will run out of soybeans or feed grains before the anticipated record 2013 crops can get into the pipeline. The stakes are very high for both the bulls and the bears. The players in...
What You Need to Know Today: Cattle futures extended their sharp selloff Friday as weakening cash cattle prices, deteriorating feedlot profitability, and reduced packer demand continued to weigh on the market. The inability of futures to sustain a rally following last week's bullish Cattle on...
Key Takeaways: WPI’s new EU rapeseed crushing margin models point to weaker processing returns over the next four months due to higher rapeseed procurement costs and weaker product values. Statistical forecasts call for German crushing margins to decline from €181/MT to €...
Key Takeaways: The tariff burden rose sharply in 2025 and 2026: the effective rate on imports in HTS Chapters 1–24 increased from 1.53 percent in 2024 to 6.11 percent in 2025, before averaging 5.68 percent in January–August 2026. Headline rates tell only part of the story: exemptio...
From WPI Consulting
Weighing in on strategic realignment
WPI’s team was retained by the governing board of a U.S. industry organization to review a decision, reached by vote, to invest significant assets into the development and management of an export trading company. WPI’s team conducted a formal review of this decision and concluded that the current level of market saturation would limit the benefits of the investment. Based on WPI’s analysis and recommended actions, the board subsequently reversed its decision and undertook a strategic planning effort to identify more impactful investments. On behalf of numerous clients, WPI has not only assisted in identifying strategic paths but also advised their implementation.