World Perspectives

Biden Dictates Prices; Dictating Standards; Dictating to Meat

Biden Dictates Prices President Joe Biden tried to position himself in last night’s State of the Union address as the bulwark against the rising tide of threats to democracy. Then he dictated to the banking industry how much they can charge for credit card late fees, threatened action against chip makers who try to sell more ounces at the same price, and is banning what he calls junk fees. He has also pushed for higher mandatory wages. The he bragged, “And I’m not stopping there.” The President’s obsession with “shrinkflation” is silly, and his focus on its occurrence in junk food is awkward. But he can’t use meat since processor margins in that industry are negative. Even in the chip aisle...

Related Articles

Phase II Deal; EU Strategy; Mimicking EU

Phase II Deal U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent suggested that a phase-one deal may be a model for trade talks with China. It may be the only model that would help U.S. farmers. Brazil still has a price edge on soybeans, and even a 10 percent tariff is enough to price out U.S. commodities...

wheat

Bearish Wheat Report, Bullish Foundation

USDA’s May WASDE report was perhaps surprisingly bearish wheat. Futures hit yet more new record lows again today. For the U.S., USDA found higher yields running into lower demand. Globally, the agency sees increasing production even in countries like Russia and China where conditions have...

soy-oilseeds

WASDE Soybeans - May 2025

USDA’s outlook for 2025/26 U.S. soybeans is for lower ending stocks: The U.S. share of global soybean exports is forecast at 26 percent - down from 28 percent last year. Accordingly, U.S. soybean exports are forecast at 1.815 billion bushels, down 35 million from 2024/25. The 2025/26 U.S...

Phase II Deal; EU Strategy; Mimicking EU

Phase II Deal U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent suggested that a phase-one deal may be a model for trade talks with China. It may be the only model that would help U.S. farmers. Brazil still has a price edge on soybeans, and even a 10 percent tariff is enough to price out U.S. commodities...

wheat

Bearish Wheat Report, Bullish Foundation

USDA’s May WASDE report was perhaps surprisingly bearish wheat. Futures hit yet more new record lows again today. For the U.S., USDA found higher yields running into lower demand. Globally, the agency sees increasing production even in countries like Russia and China where conditions have...

soy-oilseeds

WASDE Soybeans - May 2025

USDA’s outlook for 2025/26 U.S. soybeans is for lower ending stocks: The U.S. share of global soybean exports is forecast at 26 percent - down from 28 percent last year. Accordingly, U.S. soybean exports are forecast at 1.815 billion bushels, down 35 million from 2024/25. The 2025/26 U.S...

feed-grains

WASDE Corn - May 2025

USDA’s outlook for 2025/26 U.S. corn is for record supplies and total use: Higher ending stocks are expected to result from 15.8 billion bushels of corn production, up 6 percent from a year ago. Projected planted area of 95.3 million acres would be the highest in over a decade. The corn y...

Image
From WPI Consulting

Weighing in on strategic realignment

WPI’s team was retained by the governing board of a U.S. industry organization to review a decision, reached by vote, to invest significant assets into the development and management of an export trading company. WPI’s team conducted a formal review of this decision and concluded that the current level of market saturation would limit the benefits of the investment. Based on WPI’s analysis and recommended actions, the board subsequently reversed its decision and undertook a strategic planning effort to identify more impactful investments. On behalf of numerous clients, WPI has not only assisted in identifying strategic paths but also advised their implementation.

Search World Perspectives

Sign In to World Perspectives

Don’t have an account yet? Sign Up