World Perspectives

Offer Ownership; False Equivalence

Offer Ownership U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-North Dakota) has urged the U.S. Justice Department to investigate the “Big Four” meat packing companies, suggesting their excessive market power is the reason consumers are being charged high prices for beef. The North American Meat Institute responded by pointing out that, “Cattle producers are earning record profits on the sale of their animals while beef packer margins have been in the red for two years. Meanwhile, concentration in fed cattle slaughter hasn’t changed meaningfully in 30 years.” The Senator should probably talk to his own state’s influential agricultural economist, Bill Wilson at North Dakota State University. Professor Wilson has extensively...

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Market Commentary: Soybeans, Wheat Rally on China Buying; USDA Confirms Report Release

Rumors of Chinese buying supported soybeans and SRW wheat futures on Monday and sent both contracts to new rally highs. For soybeans, the biggest news drivers were details that the White House shared about China’s soybean purchase commitments and China’s confirmation that it will su...

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Summary of Futures

Dec 25 Corn closed at $4.3425/bushel, up $0.0275 from yesterday's close.  Dec 25 Wheat closed at $5.435/bushel, up $0.095 from yesterday's close.  Jan 26 Soybeans closed at $11.3425/bushel, up $0.19 from yesterday's close.  Dec 25 Soymeal closed at $320.8/short ton, down $0.8 fro...

SNAP Benefits Run Out, USDA Issues Contingency Plan

Due to the government shutdown, benefits under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) have lapsed, affecting nearly 42 million people nationwide. The shutdown also threatens benefits for nearly 7 million participants in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants...

feed-grains soy-oilseeds wheat

Market Commentary: Soybeans, Wheat Rally on China Buying; USDA Confirms Report Release

Rumors of Chinese buying supported soybeans and SRW wheat futures on Monday and sent both contracts to new rally highs. For soybeans, the biggest news drivers were details that the White House shared about China’s soybean purchase commitments and China’s confirmation that it will su...

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Summary of Futures

Dec 25 Corn closed at $4.3425/bushel, up $0.0275 from yesterday's close.  Dec 25 Wheat closed at $5.435/bushel, up $0.095 from yesterday's close.  Jan 26 Soybeans closed at $11.3425/bushel, up $0.19 from yesterday's close.  Dec 25 Soymeal closed at $320.8/short ton, down $0.8 fro...

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feed-grains soy-oilseeds wheat

Daily Estimate of Managed Money Positioning in Ag Futures

Amid the ongoing U.S. government shutdown, WPI presents the following estimates of managed money traders’ positioning in key agricultural futures markets. WPI’s estimates are based on econometric and signal processing methods that use futures price, volume, and open interest informa...

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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.

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