As you probably guessed, the ongoing conflict in the Middle East continues to drive market sentiment for energy markets and tanker vessel rates. While ther...

Please see the attached summary sheet - page one: ...

Key Market Developments Macro: Reinforcing a Higher-for-Longer Environment Today’s inflation data reinforced what markets were already beginning to p...

Great Timing The workers’ union at the JBS meatpacking plant in Greeley, Colorado, is on strike. The union is demanding more pay for its members, of...

Russian Grain Markets: 9–13 March 2026 Russia’s grain market turned firmer in the second week of March, led by stronger price action in Asian R...

May 26 Corn closed at $4.54/bushel, up $0 from yesterday's close.  May 26 Wheat closed at $5.8975/bushel, down $0.075 from yesterday's close.  Ma...

CBOT ag futures were highly mixed on Tuesday as traders recovered from Monday’s drubbing and limit-down move in soybeans and soyoil. At Monday’...

Bilateral Postponement The upcoming meeting between President Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping is being delayed about “a month or so” at the...

The JBS beef plant in Greeley, Colorado, went on strike yesterday. Today is day two of the labor shutdown. The Greeley plant can process about 6,000 head p...

Mediterranean/Middle East/North Africa/Africa – MEA Region The Muslim month of Ramadan is expected to end around 19 March with the beginning of the E...

Beef packer margins turned positive for the first time since late last year as returns improved to $53/head last week. The turnaround was driven by a stron...

May 26 Corn closed at $4.54/bushel, down $0.1325 from yesterday's close.  May 26 Wheat closed at $5.9725/bushel, down $0.165 from yesterday's close.&n...

As quickly as it began, the U.S.-Iran war-fueled rally in commodity markets looks to be ending. Over the weekend and through Monday, several reports came i...

China Ag Purchases The market reacted today to suggestions that President Trump will delay his planned trip to China at the end of the month due to the war...

The war in Iran is impacting not only crude oil prices but also fertilizer prices. It is a supply issue, and thus the Treasury Department has announced new...

Corn After a week-on-week advance of 3.6 percentage points, the corn harvest reached 7.2 percent of the national area, with fieldwork concentrated mainly i...

Friday’s CFTC report showed funds further expanding long positions across the major ag futures contracts for the eighth straight week. Funds added 24...

May 26 Corn closed at $4.6725/bushel, up $0.0475 from yesterday's close.  May 26 Wheat closed at $6.1375/bushel, up $0.1525 from yesterday's close.&nb...

Corn and soybeans closed lower in the overnight session, and wheat joined them in trading lower this morning for a brief period before a turnaround that al...

United States Trade Representative (USTR) Jamieson Greer on Wednesday announced the initiation of investigations regarding the “acts, policies, and p...

Yesterday, WPI briefly examined how biodiesel production margins have surged alongside broader energy markets following the U.S./Israel-Iran conflict. The...

The conflict in the Middle East continues to dominate developments in energy markets and crude oil or natural gas tanker vessels, but as time passes the co...

Export Sales and Shipments for February 27-March 5, 2026.  Wheat: Net sales of 455,400 metric tons (MT) for 2025/2026 were up noticeably from the prev...

May 26 Corn closed at $4.625/bushel, up $0.0225 from yesterday's close.  May 26 Wheat closed at $5.985/bushel, up $0.0375 from yesterday's close. ...

Key Market Developments Crude oil has been the architect behind the violent price swings seen across the grain markets over the last four trading sessions...

The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released the February Consumer Price Index (CPI) yesterday. During February, the CPI for all items increased by 0.3 pe...

Cargill Suspends Soybean Exports to China Cargill has stopped buying soybeans from Brazilian farmers following new regulatory and sanitary/phytosanitary re...

New, Old Approach Having had its broad IEEPA approach to applying global tariffs shot down by the High Court, USTR announced yesterday that it is launching...

The conflict in the Middle East continues to dominate developments in energy markets and crude oil or natural gas tanker vessels, but as time passes the co...

USDA’s outlook for 2025/26 U.S. soybeans had increased imports and crush, but ending stocks remained unchanged from last month.  The average ann...

USDA’s outlook for 2025/26 U.S. corn outlook is unchanged from last month. Global corn ending stocks increased by 3.8 million metric tons to 292.8 mi...

USDA’s outlook for 2025/26 U.S. wheat supply and use categories are unchanged from last month. Global supplies increased modestly by 0.2 million tons...

There were more modest volumes trading in today’s session, perhaps reflecting growing resilience and circumspection about geopolitical uncertainties...

May 26 Corn closed at $4.6025/bushel, up $0.08 from yesterday's close.  May 26 Wheat closed at $5.9475/bushel, up $0.0375 from yesterday's close. ...

Russian Grain Markets: 2–6 March 2026 During the week of 02–06 March, the Russian grains market stabilized and showed early signs of recovery a...

Usually, the day USDA releases its monthly world supply and demand report – known colloquially as “WASDE day” – sees heightened vol...

May 26 Corn closed at $4.5225/bushel, down $0.015 from yesterday's close.  May 26 Wheat closed at $5.91/bushel, down $0.1225 from yesterday's close.&n...

Iran War The U.S. and Israeli attacks on Iran are said to complicate the visit later this month by President Trump to China. As an ally of Iran and a major...

The January jobs report surprised to the upside, coming in at 172,000 new jobs, well above the consensus expectation of 68,000. However, the February repor...

Mediterranean/Middle East/North Africa/Africa – MEA Region Middle Eastern countries have imported an average of close to 29 million MT of grains and...

WPI offers the following PDF of key supply and demand tables and charts relating to the USDA’s latest WASDE report. This is not an all-inclusive comp...

WPI offers the following PDF of key supply and demand tables and charts relating to the USDA’s latest WASDE report. This is not an all-inclusive comp...

WPI offers the following PDF of key supply and demand tables and charts relating to the USDA’s latest WASDE report. This is not an all-inclusive comp...

Beef packer margins improved sharply, with estimated net losses narrowing to -$111/head from -$206/head the prior week. The recovery was driven by another...

May 26 Corn closed at $4.5375/bushel, down $0.0675 from yesterday's close.  May 26 Wheat closed at $6.0325/bushel, down $0.135 from yesterday's close...

The massive rally in energy markets remains the primary story underpinning ag markets. Front-month crude oil futures ripped higher overnight and traded abo...

Process Standards as NTBs California’s Prop 12, which a House Agriculture Committee-passed farm bill is supposed to override, restricts the sale of p...

Today the war in Iran has hit its 10th day. Iranian forces have sustained their retaliatory strikes on US military assets and other key infrastructure in K...

Corn The corn harvest is beginning to gain momentum in Argentina. So far, 7 percent of the area has been harvested, with the core corn region already reach...

Friday’s CFTC report showed funds further expanding long positions across the major ag futures contracts for the seventh straight week. Funds added 1...

The geopolitics of war in Iran are said to now be eclipsing any market focus on next week’s USDA March WASDE report. Volumes were modest in today&rsq...

May 26 Corn closed at $4.605/bushel, up $0.07 from yesterday's close.  May 26 Wheat closed at $6.1675/bushel, up $0.33 from yesterday's close.  M...

After two days of mark-up, the so-called “skinny farm bill,” the Farm, Food, and National Security Act, cleared the House of Representatives Ag...

Somewhat lost in the current discussion over the impacts of the conflict in Iran and the Persian Gulf is the impact on grain trade. The region is not usual...

As you might guess, it is all about the conflict in the Middle East this week when discussing anything connected to energy or freight markets. Rate estimat...

May 26 Corn closed at $4.535/bushel, up $0.0975 from yesterday's close.  May 26 Wheat closed at $5.8375/bushel, up $0.155 from yesterday's close. ...

War-related upward pressure in petroleum prices continues to provide support to grain prices. Brent crude oil hit $85/barrel and WTI crude rose 8.5 percent...

Export Sales and Shipments for February 20-26, 2026. Wheat: Net sales of 203,100 metric tons (MT) for 2025/2026 were down 16 percent from the previous week...

Feeder cattle sales were up over a year ago in February, but much of that was due to February 2025 sales being light. Still, the increase in activity bears...

As you might guess, it is all about the conflict in the Middle East this week when discussing anything connected to energy or freight markets. Rate estimat...

Key Market Developments Markets opened mixed after reports that Iran signaled a willingness to discuss ending the conflict with the United States. Sentimen...

May 26 Corn closed at $4.4375/bushel, down $0.0275 from yesterday's close.  May 26 Wheat closed at $5.6825/bushel, down $0.0575 from yesterday's close...

Russian Grain Markets: 23–27 February 2026 The Russian grain market turned bearish during the final week of February as global trends and heavy domes...

Old World Order The geopolitical impacts of the war on Iran continue, but Wall Street recovered today, aided by strong employment data. Iran announced a ba...

Four days into the U.S.-Iran conflict, it is becoming apparent that the conflict will last longer than a few days, and impacts could be more widespread tha...

War and China The U.S. and Israeli attacks on Iran also involve China, tangentially if not directly. Iran has been supplying about 13.4 percent of China&rs...

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) is currently seeking co-sponsors for a bill he will introduce as early as Thursday of this week, the Family G...

May 26 Corn closed at $4.465/bushel, up $0.0075 from yesterday's close.  May 26 Wheat closed at $5.74/bushel, down $0.0325 from yesterday's close.&nbs...

Mediterranean/Middle East/North Africa/Africa – MEA Region Turkey’s flour exports in 2025, at 2.36 MMT, were back up close to 2019 levels but w...

Regional News  The latest crop update from the EU Commission’s MARS crop monitoring division reported “broadly satisfactory” conditi...

Beef packer margins improved sharply last week but remained deeply negative, with estimated net losses narrowing to -$206/head from the prior week’s...

The primary drivers of Monday’s grain trade were, of course, the U.S. and Israel’s weekend attacks on Iran that killed the latter country&rsquo...

For weeks now, global energy and geopolitical markets have been speculating about a possible conflict in the Middle East between Iran and the U.S., but the...

Transatlantic Sensitivities The frustration between the U.S. and Europe runs both ways, but the calculation is still one of mutual need, as articulated by...

May 26 Corn closed at $4.4575/bushel, down $0.0275 from yesterday's close.  May 26 Wheat closed at $5.7725/bushel, down $0.1425 from yesterday's close...

The market is still waiting for the 2026-2027 required volume obligation (RVO) to be announced. The expectation is that it will come by the end of this mon...

WHEAT As February draws to a close, wheat exports during the first quarter of the marketing year (December–February) are approaching 10 MMT, compared...

Friday’s CFTC report showed funds further expanding long positions across the major ag futures contracts for the sixth straight week. Funds added 176...

There was mostly green on the board for Friday and for the week as a whole. Another contract high was printed by soyoil as higher energies, higher inflatio...

May 26 Corn closed at $4.485/bushel, up $0.05 from yesterday's close.  May 26 Wheat closed at $5.915/bushel, up $0.17 from yesterday's close.  Ma...

The Cold Storage report for January showed that red meat and poultry supplies rose from the month ending December, but total supplies are down from a year...

The recent volatility in lean hog futures — from fresh contract highs at the end of January to the dramatic early-February selloff — has many i...

The start of 2026 has been the exact opposite of what dry bulk markets and traders expected at the end of 2025. Typically, the Lunar New Year and post-holi...

A mostly bullish overnight session was not sustained, splitting the soy complex and wheat. Corn rallied late to avert a loss. The morning opened with USDA&...

May 26 Corn closed at $4.435/bushel, up $0.015 from yesterday's close.  May 26 Wheat closed at $5.745/bushel, up $0.0475 from yesterday's close. ...

Export Sales and Shipments for February 13-19, 2026  Wheat: Net sales of 243,000 metric tons (MT) for 2025/2026 were down 16 percent from the previous...

During the State of the Union (SOTU) address, President Trump made several claims about food prices, citing reductions in costs to consumers. Food inflatio...

With soybean and soy product exports frequently in the headlines amid the ongoing tariff and policy shifts from Washington, examining export trends is incr...

The start of 2026 has been the exact opposite of what dry bulk markets and traders expected at the end of 2025. Typically, the Lunar New Year and post-holi...

Key Market Developments While tariffs were not addressed directly in the State of the Union, trade policy remains steady. Reports during today’s sess...

Fuzzy Math Among President Trump’s various assertions in last night’s State of the Union address was that tariffs would someday replace the inc...

May 26 Corn closed at $4.42/bushel, up $0.035 from yesterday's close.  May 26 Wheat closed at $5.6975/bushel, down $0.035 from yesterday's close. ...

Regional News  On 20 February, Germany confirmed its first case of Newcastle disease in 18 years, after a commercial turkey flock in Neißemü...

Russian Grain Markets: 16–20 February 2026 During the week under review, the Russian grain market showed localized volatility across interior regions...

The soy complex was the upside leader again on rumors of Chinese purchases of U.S. soybeans from the PNW, as well as some harvest and quality issues in Bra...

Farm Policy Next week is China’s annual ‘Two Sessions’ (the People’s Congress plus a consultative body) where Beijing releases its...

Last Thursday, the Supreme Court of the United States upheld a lower court ruling that the tariffs imposed under the International Emergency Economic Power...

Mar 26 Corn closed at $4.2775/bushel, up $0.0025 from yesterday's close.  May 26 Wheat closed at $5.7325/bushel, down $0.005 from yesterday's close.&n...

Mediterranean/Middle East/North Africa/Africa – MEA Region Tunisia’s 2026 winter crop planting started a little late due to a lack of rainfall,...

Beef packer margins deteriorated sharply last week, with estimated net margins falling to -$330.80/hd, down $60.58/hd week over week. The Choice cutout hel...

The CBOT turned lower on Monday, with the back-and-forth action of the Supreme Court and President Trump regarding tariffs on foreign imports driving volat...

Tariff Confusion Fun Reactions to the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling that general use of tariffs is not within the President’s authority under the...

Mar 26 Corn closed at $4.275/bushel, up $0 from yesterday's close.  May 26 Wheat closed at $5.7375/bushel, down $0.065 from yesterday's close.  M...

Corn Rains finally arrived across much of Argentina’s agricultural region, halting the crop deterioration seen in recent weeks. The core corn and soy...

USDA’s monthly cattle on feed report was released Friday. The total number of cattle on feed in feedlots with 1,000 head or more capacity was 11.5 mi...

Friday’s CFTC report showed funds expanding long positions across the major ag futures contracts for the fifth straight week. Funds added 95,000 cont...

U.S. Cattle on Feed in feedlots totaled 11.5 million head on February 1, 2026 - 2 percent below Feb 1, 2025.  Placements in feedlots during January to...

Export Sales and Shipments for February 6-12, 2026.  Wheat: Net sales of 288,000 metric tons (MT) for 2025/2026 were down 41 percent from the previous...