The CBOT opened lower overnight as USDA’s surprise increase in the good/excellent ratings for corn and soybeans pressured the market. Wheat followed corn lower, pressured by spillover selling as well as its own good harvest statistics. The increase in crop conditions ratings seemed to spark fresh expectations for U.S. corn and soybean yields, with many traders and analysts now shifting their yield forecasts higher. A lack of daily export sales news further caused prices to slide lower, though reports are that commercial pricing was active. The U.S. corn harvest will start in the Delta in the next few weeks and provide a fresh influx of cash grain for export. Cash prices are likely to start grinding lower under seasonal harvest...
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.