- Grain and oilseed markets were firm today, mostly on growing chatter that the U.S. and China are very close to reaching an agreement on trade. The devil is always in the details, which won’t be known until the deal is made public. Much of the commentary on various business channels today focused on when an announcement might be made, and the most interesting was about how, more importantly, the timing will be all about politics. Apparently, the Trump administration would like to delay it as long as possible to get the maximum political punch, and that could mean May or June. This is something to think about in terms of the potential impact on the markets. - There was a news story today about Canada’s ramped-up soybean exports...
Key Takeaways: Total U.S. crop acres (excluding hay) are forecast to expand fractionally this year due to greater oilseed crop and winter wheat plantings. One of the key drivers of this year’s crop outlook is input costs, and crops with a lower cost profile have an advantage in producers...
Soybeans Market Overview After many weeks of almost no activity in Brazil and little activity in the U.S., this week kicked off with a lot of activity in the U.S. soybean market. Once again, the sole buyer was Sinograin/Cofco, acting on behalf of the Chinese Federal Reserve, which purchased a t...
What You Need to Know Today: Crude oil prices extended their rally today, supported by several developments, including escalating Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabian oil infrastructure and growing concerns about supply disruptions. The Trump administration is reportedly preparing to remove 50 perc...
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.