Ludditic Longshoremen Labor strikes are always about money, working conditions and job protection but the latter is skyrocketing to the top. The U.S. East and Gulf Coast port workers’ strike is a prime example. Automation is threatening the number of longshoreman positions needed, and the higher the unions drive wages, the greater becomes the threat of automation. Message to Trump and Harris: AI controlled robotics is the future of both manufacturing and farming. It will suppress the need for immigration in the future. But the top goal of Harold J. Daggett, president of the International Longshoremen’s Association, is playing 19th century’s Ned Ludd, he wants a ban on automation. He said, “We do not believe t...
There was heavy volume exiting soybeans, which dragged down the broader market today. The lack of a specific Chinese buying commitment for soybeans undermined speculators who had placed bets on state-directed trade. But even the Chinese do not totally ignore market fundamentals. They may still...
On Tuesday, 12 May, WPI reported on an Executive Order being prepared by the Trump Administration to suspend tariff rate quotas (TRQs) on beef from all exporters for 200 days as a means of addressing high beef prices in the United States. After considerable pushback from cattle producer groups,...
WPI has officially launched Transportation Perspectives as a standalone weekly report separate from our Ag Perspectives articles and analysis. Current Ag Perspectives subscribers will have gratis access to the report through 16 April 2026. Please email us or subscribe online after this date to...
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.