It is G-20 week in Buenos Aires, and the highly-anticipated side meeting between U.S. President Trump and Chinese President Xi slated for 30 November is center stage as far as agricultural markets are concerned. U.S. soybean producers desperately hope it will lead quickly to some sort of an agreement that results in China lifting the 25 percent tariff on U.S. soybean imports implemented last July. That tariff has created a de facto embargo on fresh U.S. soybean sales to China along with cancellations of those previously made but unshipped. It was imposed as U.S. farmers were in the midst of growing what appears to be a record soybean crop. As a result, soybean futures prices have fallen more than $1.50/bushel since May, and cash soybean bas...
What You Need to Know Today: Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva secured reelection on Sunday, defeating right-wing Senator Flávio Bolsonaro despite trailing in the first round of voting. The surprise victory triggered a sharp selloff in Brazilian financial market...
The 2026 midterm elections are a week from tomorrow, but early voting has been taking place for weeks. At stake is control of Congress, including the House of Representatives, where all 435 seats are contested, and the Senate, where approximately one-third of the seats are up for election. Farm...
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...
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.