General Comments Frankly, we get tired of talking about weather and Europe's debt crisis all of the time, but realistically, when it comes to grain and soy markets these days, what else is there to talk about? Well, there is one other thing, and that is the difficulty that users and exporters are having sourcing old crop corn. That difficulty is measured by the direction taken by cash bids. Since mid-May the cash basis bids for corn have had only one direction, and that is up. Bids for nearby cash corn in Peoria, Illinois jumped 13 cents today to 73 over July. We wonder if that is some kind of a record.Undoubtedly, some corn is still in farm storage. Those who still own some corn are understandably reluctant to part with it until they be...
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...
As predicted, the Federal Reserve held rates steady at the last meeting before the midterm elections, likely in part because of the election (see WPI 19 October and 22 September). The decision comes at the tail end of a midterm election cycle that has been marked by the two parties campaigning...
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 €...
From WPI Consulting
Forecasting developments in production agriculture
On behalf of a private U.S. agricultural technology provider, WPI’s team generated an econometric model to forecast the movement of concentrated corn production north and west from the traditional U.S. Corn Belt. WPI’s model has subsequently provided quantitative support to a multi-million-dollar investment into short-season corn variety development. WPI’s methodology included a series of interviews with regional grain elevators and seed consultants. Emphasizing outreach and communication with stakeholders who possess intimate sectoral knowledge – on-the-ground insights – is a regular component of WPI’s methodologies, made possible by WPI’s ever-growing network of industry contacts.