World Perspectives

Produce Price Inflation Mixed Signals

Producer price inflation (PPI) ended 2024 up 0.2 percent in December. That is a modest gain and was below pre-report expectations. Nonetheless, the PPI was 3.3 higher than a year ago, and substantially higher than the Federal Reserve’s 2 percent target. That stickiness trend will keep inflation squarely in the radar of the Fed’s focus in 2025. Moreover, as WPI reported on 6 January, the “Trump agenda of tariffs and immigration action which could reduce labor supply, and tax cuts all have the potential to be inflationary.” This is particularly noteworthy as commodity and goods prices were up 0.6 percent in December, and services were flat. 01142025dj.png 34.57 KBThe increase in the PPI in December was led by energy prices, which jumped...

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May 26 Corn closed at $4.43/bushel, up $0.0275 from yesterday's close.  May 26 Wheat closed at $5.92/bushel, up $0.0975 from yesterday's close.  May 26 Soybeans closed at $11.58/bushel, down $0.0425 from yesterday's close.  May 26 Soymeal closed at $329.7/short ton, down $2.2 fro...

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Soybeans Dalien soybean futures and spot prices have defied seasonal trends since October 2025. They have been rising due to structural shortages of high-protein soybeans. Liu Mei, soybean analyst for Shanghai Steel Network, blames the situation on a poor harvest last year in the south, a delay...

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livestock

Livestock Industry Margins

Beef packer margins deteriorated further last week to -$85/head, down from -$17/head the prior week, as continued strength in fed cattle prices again outpaced weakening boxed beef values. The Choice cutout declined $5.14/cwt to $386.41/cwt, while fed cattle prices rose $3.78/cwt to $388.36/cwt,...

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From WPI Consulting

Illuminating the value of technical research

On behalf of a commodity producer organization, WPI evaluated the outputs from a project that featured a $5 million investment into technical research over multiple years. WPI’s team captured the results of this extensive effort and synthesized them for presentation to the organization’s governing board; among the findings uncovered and presented for the first time was the development of genomic traits proven, via rigorous testing, to provide crop yield advantages of 50 percent or more to U.S. farmers in times of drought. Capturing measurable results from long-term efforts can be challenging. Educating clients on the dynamics of success measurement when quantifiable results are not readily available requires deep client-consultant collaboration and an ability to consider both near- and long-term client aspirations with market/policy dynamics – attributes that WPI brings to every consulting engagement.

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