Argentina’s Domestic Situation As has been widely reported, Argentine President Mauricio Macri lost last week’s primary election against the Alberto Fernandez/Cristina Kirchner dupla. While the presidential election will take place in October, the 15 percent margin of loss will be difficult to reverse. The market reacted by devaluating the peso 30 percent (from 45 to 58-60 ARS/USD), the country risk increased from 900 to 1,700 points, and interest rates climbed to 74 percent. Rumors, denials and different announcements caused significant volatility and uncertainty in the markets. At the end, the president announced many populist measures to win middle class votes and provide some financial ease after the currency devaluation t...
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.