World Perspectives
feed-grains soy-oilseeds wheat

Chinese Trade Soap Opera and Markets

Having commented so often about U.S.-China trade relations and the ongoing negotiations, we fear we risk boring clients. However, the trade negotiations are reminiscent of the traditional “soap operas” on daytime television in that their stories never end. Every time one crisis is resolved, another arises. Recent comments from President Trump and U.S. trade officials have followed two themes: 1) there has been great progress on the key issues; and 2) considerable differences over key issues remain to be resolved. Although these may appear contradictory, both are probably accurate. There has been considerable progress and even agreement on some of the important issues, but differences do also remain. According to various press...

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livestock

Livestock Round Up: Wholesale Protein CPI

During the State of the Union (SOTU) address, President Trump made several claims about food prices, citing reductions in costs to consumers. Food inflation is a major issue for voters, and the President is hyper-focused on beef prices in particular prior to the 2026 mid-term elections. The fin...

soy-oilseeds

U.S. Soy & Product Export Trends

With soybean and soy product exports frequently in the headlines amid the ongoing tariff and policy shifts from Washington, examining export trends is increasingly important. Thursday’s updated Export Sales report from the USDA offered some interesting statistics for these markets, and WP...

feed-grains soy-oilseeds wheat

Market Commentary: Stable Policy, Conditional Demand, Weather Emerging as the Next Risk

Key Market Developments While tariffs were not addressed directly in the State of the Union, trade policy remains steady. Reports during today’s session confirmed that U.S. tariffs on China will remain in the 35 percent–50 percent range, signaling limited escalation ahead of upcomin...

livestock

Livestock Round Up: Wholesale Protein CPI

During the State of the Union (SOTU) address, President Trump made several claims about food prices, citing reductions in costs to consumers. Food inflation is a major issue for voters, and the President is hyper-focused on beef prices in particular prior to the 2026 mid-term elections. The fin...

soy-oilseeds

U.S. Soy & Product Export Trends

With soybean and soy product exports frequently in the headlines amid the ongoing tariff and policy shifts from Washington, examining export trends is increasingly important. Thursday’s updated Export Sales report from the USDA offered some interesting statistics for these markets, and WP...

feed-grains soy-oilseeds wheat

Market Commentary: Stable Policy, Conditional Demand, Weather Emerging as the Next Risk

Key Market Developments While tariffs were not addressed directly in the State of the Union, trade policy remains steady. Reports during today’s session confirmed that U.S. tariffs on China will remain in the 35 percent–50 percent range, signaling limited escalation ahead of upcomin...

Policy Roundup

Fuzzy Math Among President Trump’s various assertions in last night’s State of the Union address was that tariffs would someday replace the income tax, but that is a mathematical impossibility. The value of imported goods is around $3 trillion, and the income tax generates nearly $5...

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From WPI Consulting

Infrastructure investment due diligence

On behalf of a Canadian oilseed processer WPI's team provided market analysis, econometric modeling and financial due diligence in support of a $24 million-dollar investment in a Ukrainian crush plant. Consistent with WPI's findings, local production to supply the plant and the facility's output have expanded exponentially since the investment. WPI has conducted parallel work on behalf of U.S., South American and European clients, both private and public, in the agri-food space.

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