Dinosaurs versus Unicorns Unlike dinosaurs, unicorns are mythical creatures, except in the world of finance. Financial unicorns are privately held startup companies renowned for disrupting stodgy, status quo industries; the latter being a perfect definition of the agrifood industry. To obtain unicorn designation, companies must surpass $1 billion in value. According to CB Insights, this week marks the first time the number unicorns has topped 1,000, with their growth in numbers jumping 20 percent in just the past six months. Most of the 1,000 unicorns operate in the tech space like software, fintech and AI, or traditionally stodgy inefficient industries like healthcare, transportation, consumer retail, or auto/travel. Based on CB’s d...
What You Need to Know Today: The hot, dry weather forecast continues to drive strength in grain futures with corn and soybeans hitting another day of strong gains. Monday’s Crop Progress and Conditions data were in line with market expectations and showed relatively few concerns for the...
Yesterday we wrote about the Q1 GDP numbers and the June employment reports in an article entitled Real GDP for Q1 Relying on AI Buildout, Held Back by Consumer Spending. That article mentioned that consumer spending had become a drag on GDP. Nonetheless, real GDP in Q1 was revised upward to 2...
Key Takeaways: The Middle East and North Africa's arid climate and limited water resources have created a structural dependence on imported wheat. Government wheat tenders in major importing countries serve as important benchmarks for global trade, providing insight into exporter competitivene...
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.