World Perspectives

Vietnam FTA; Debt versus Efficiency; Gallows Humor

Vietnam FTA USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service notes that the U.S. is the largest trading partner with Vietnam that lacks a free trade agreement. The result is that U.S. farm product exporters continue to lose market share, especially in higher valued goods. At the same time, Vietnam’s food imports are rising. The EU is implementing an FTA with Vietnam and will likely cause larger losses for U.S. suppliers. It is a little awkward since Washington just categorized Vietnam as a non-market economy, but it is U.S. domestic politics that precludes negotiating an FTA with Hanoi.   Debt versus Efficiency Neither Kamala Harris or Donald Trump are talking about the U.S. national debt despite its threat to the dollar and the...

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From WPI Consulting

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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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