Moral-Based Trade III French President Emmanuel Macron sought to add to his own political strength yesterday by saying, “Let’s stop signing trade agreements with those who don’t comply with the Paris Agreement.” As has been noted in the past (see Ag Perspectives, 4 October 2017 and 14 March 2018), there are pitfalls in conditioning trade agreements on moral issues. For example, several EU countries do not recognize same sex marriage; Ireland still bans abortion; and France prohibits the wearing of religious headwear in public places. But the key question for Mssr. Macron regarding his proposed threshold is whether it is about merely being a signatory to the agreement or about reducing greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs)...
What You Need to Know Today: USDA reports are delayed until Tuesday due to the federal holiday on Monday. Over the weekend, President Trump announced a ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine. Russia warmly welcomed and confirmed this ceasefire by conducting more strikes against Ukraine. Specific...
On Saturday, 10 October, at a campaign rally in Clarksville, Tennessee, President Trump said that the U.S. and Mexico would come to terms on a new trade deal, and he said Canada does not need to be part of the deal. Trump called the coming agreement with Mexico “great” but gave no d...
Key Takeaways: The United States has steadily lost global wheat export market share since the 1970s, falling from the world's leading exporter to a projected fifth place in 2026/27. The rapid expansion of Black Sea wheat exports, driven by improved productivity and export infrastructure, has r...
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.