The political establishment in Washington is stunned following yesterday's rout by Donald Trump and the Republicans. The Democrats’ arch nemesis not only survived everything they threw at him, but he also took an increasing share of the minority voting block that they claimed as their own. It was an election for the ages and will be studied as an unforeseen watershed. Understanding its impacts on agriculture and trade will be WPI’s focus. The largest impact will be Mr. Trump’s pledge to impose large, broad-based tariffs on trading partners. A USDA study found that retaliatory tariffs lowered U.S. agricultural exports by $27 billion from mid-2018 when tariffs were initially imposed through the end of 2019. But the adverse impacts contin...
Key Takeaways: Despite little progress in a U.S.-Iran framework for a peace deal or an agreement itself, vessel transits are picking up in the Strait of Hormuz (SOH). On Wednesday morning, Kpler reported 31 verified vessel transits of the SOH in a positive sign of increased activity in t...
Key Takeaways: Despite rising cost pressures — including the recent run-up in fuel and energy costs — U.S. cow-calf producers are facing another year of record-breaking revenues and net returns for 2026. Cost pressures — particularly non-feed variable costs — and...
Key Market Insights Outside markets dominated today’s session. Crude oil traded below $70 per barrel, the U.S. dollar climbed to a 13-month high, and both gold and silver posted sharp declines as traders increased expectations for additional Federal Reserve rate hikes. At the same time, t...
From WPI Consulting
Infrastructure investment due diligence
On behalf of a Canadian oilseed processer WPI's team provided market analysis, econometric modeling and financial due diligence in support of a $24 million-dollar investment in a Ukrainian crush plant. Consistent with WPI's findings, local production to supply the plant and the facility's output have expanded exponentially since the investment. WPI has conducted parallel work on behalf of U.S., South American and European clients, both private and public, in the agri-food space.