World Perspectives

COVID Variant Inflation

The Senate Banking Committee held a hearing today entitled, “CARES Act Oversight of Treasury and the Federal Reserve: Building a Resilient Economy.” Testifying were Fed Chairman Jerome Powell and Treasury Secretary, and former Fed Chair, Janet Yellen. As the title suggests, the hearing was all about COVID and its impact on the economic outlook since the outbreak began more than 20 months ago,.  Powell noted a few key points from the Fed’s perspective: The economy started to recover quickly last spring only to be set back by the Delta variant over the summer. The decline in Delta COVID cases in September corresponded with “a pick-up in economic growth.” Part of the impact of the Delta varia...

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Bearish Sugar Prices to Continue Despite Production Increases

The U.S. 2025/26 sugar supply is forecast at 14.119 million short tons, raw value (STRV), down 1,800 STRV from November as the decrease in expected imports of refined organic and specialty sugar, which pays the high tier, out of quota duty, more than offsets the increase in beginning stocks and...

livestock

Livestock Industry Margins

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Bearish Sugar Prices to Continue Despite Production Increases

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feed-grains soy-oilseeds wheat

Summary of Futures

Mar 26 Corn closed at $4.365/bushel, down $0.0325 from yesterday's close.  Mar 26 Wheat closed at $5.095/bushel, down $0.1125 from yesterday's close.  Jan 26 Soybeans closed at $10.6275/bushel, down $0.09 from yesterday's close.  Jan 26 Soymeal closed at $302.4/short ton, down $1...

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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.

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