Lower oil export earnings for OPEC countries have affected U.S. broiler exports; is there a lesson for the NAFTA renegotiations?We’ve long argued that the most important trade metric in macroeconomic terms is the overall volume of trade, not the balance of trade. Lower imports into the U.S. reduce exports in the long run because they decrease the purchasing power of trading partners. As the U.S. buys goods and services from other countries, it does so in U.S. dollars that can ultimately only be redeemed in the U.S. In short, capital flows move counter to trade flows, so a trade surplus means a deficit of capital inflows, while a trade deficit will lead to more capital inflows.Consider crude oil and broilers. OPEC member countries started ea...
What You Need to Know Today: China’s state-run COFCO, in statements on Tuesday, implied that U.S. corn exports were currently uneconomical but hinted that the Middle Kingdom would import 3.5 MMT of the feed grain this year, with 1 MMT likely sourced from the U.S. Another drone attack has...
Tanker-tracking data shows a smaller recovery in oil flowing through the Strait of Hormuz than previously thought. Energy Secretary Chris Wright, speaking by video to an international energy conference in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, said that oil moving through the strait was back to 80 to 90 percent...
Key Takeaways: While soybean, palm, sunflower, and rapeseed oils dominate global vegetable oil markets, premium oils such as olive, avocado, coconut, and sesame command substantially higher prices due to their distinctive flavors, nutritional characteristics, and specialized culinary uses.. Ol...
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.