Wuhan confirms that in addition to the national ban on wild animal trade, the city of Wuhan reportedly has banned hunting wild animals and their trade on o...

USDA released its cattle on feed report today and as expected marketings were at an historic low (since records began in 1996) at 1.46 million head. Placem...

Monday, 25 May is a U.S. holiday, and the markets and our office are closed that day. Please note that the next Ag Perspectives will be published on 26 May...

Note: the CBOT and CME markets will be closed on Monday, 25 May and WPI’s offices will be similarly shutdown.  The CBOT finished the week with s...

USDA reports that U.S. Cattle on Feed is down 5 percent from 2019 in feedlots with capacity of 1,000 head or more – totaling 11.2 million head on May...

Jul 20 Corn closed at $3.18/bushel, up $0.0025 from yesterday's close.  Jul 20 Wheat closed at $5.0875/bushel, down $0.0725 from yesterday's close.&nb...

The attached PDF shows WPI's summary analysis and intrepretation for the latest Cold Storage report, published 21 May 2020 by the USDA. Briefly,...

Most of the top ten beef producing countries around the world have increased production over the past decade except for two, the EU and Australia. Australi...

Beef and pork production are starting to rebound, after the big drop in April. Estimated pork production was 2.3 billion pounds for the month and beef was...

The day started and ended as called with Chicago wheat and the livestock complex in the green while corn and soybeans went under water. Wheat remains the p...

Jul 20 Corn closed at $3.1775/bushel, down $0.0175 from yesterday's close.  Jul 20 Wheat closed at $5.16/bushel, up $0.0225 from yesterday's close.&nb...

WTO Foil Senator Josh Hawley (R-Missouri) added arguments to his call for a U.S. withdrawal from the WTO but they are not necessarily good ones. Hawley wil...

Big U.S. Soybean Export Sales Last Week The week ending 14 May was a good one for U.S. exporters of soybeans, soymeal and soyoil according to today’s...

Wheat:  Net sales of 175,800 metric tons for 2019/2020 were down 14 percent from the previous week and 39 percent from the prior 4-week average. Corn:...

Note: There will be no Technical Perspectives reports on Friday, 22 May. Markets are closed on Monday, 25 May. THE OPEN July beans: 2 1/2 lower July meal:&...

We are sheltering in place during The Attack of Covid-19, listening to health experts and politicians debate responses to the spread of the disease. We are...

Note: There will be no Technical Perspectives reports on Friday, 22 May. SPREADS July crush trades to 83.50c/bu while oilshare trades to 32.43%.  July...

Note: There will be no Technical Perspectives reports on Friday, 22 May. GOOD MORNING, Prices continue to drive into trading range territory as the markets...

The CBOT opened with wheat leading the way higher, soybeans firming with support from soyoil and short covering in soymeal while corn established itself as...

Europe’s new Farm to Fork strategy includes ambitious targets to reduce fertilizer and pesticide use, which should yield some skepticism. The goal is...

Jul 20 Corn closed at $3.195/bushel, down $0.0175 from yesterday's close.  Jul 20 Wheat closed at $5.1375/bushel, up $0.15 from yesterday's close.&nbs...

The current hot, dry conditions affecting Europe are raising concern about the impact on crop conditions. The area of concern includes northwestern France,...

Russian Grain Markets: 11-15 May 2020 Milling and feed wheat prices as well as corn prices kept growing in the domestic grain market while feed barley pric...

Livestock New Study Points to Steady Recovery in China’s Hog Herd The Rural Development Research Institute of the China Academy of Social Sciences, a...

THE OPEN July beans:  4 higher July meal:  1.90 higher July soyoil: 10 higher July corn:  1 1/2 lower July wheat:  4 1/2 higher The mar...

SPREADS July crush trades at 85.55c/bu while oilshare weakens to 32.15%.   July/Nov beans trades from 7 1/2c out to 8 1/4c.  July/Sep corn t...

GOOD MORNING, Prices are mostly higher this morning with corn returning as the weaker leg.   Wheat is seeing a bounce courtesy of a weaker US dol...

The CBOT opened mixed with soybeans coming under pressure from reversal of old long soybeans/short corn/wheat trades and from new contract lows in soymeal...

As previewed yesterday, the Administration announced the details of the $16 billion COVID-19 relief direct payment program – the Coronavirus Food Ass...

Boost for Green Protectionism France and Germany have agreed to tie the COVID economic recovery funding to an expedited adoption of Green Deal measures tha...

Jul 20 Corn closed at $3.2125/bushel, up $0.005 from yesterday's close.  Jul 20 Wheat closed at $4.9875/bushel, up $0.0175 from yesterday's close.&nbs...

The EU is the largest consumer of rapeseed, followed by China, Canada and India. Its use in number three Canada and number four India has been rising, but...

THE OPEN July beans:  2 higher July meal;  .10 lower July soyoil:  10 higher July corn:  3 1/2 higher July wheat:  2 1/2 higher Th...

Regional Updates MEDITERRANEAN/MIDDLE EAST/NORTH AFRICA  The United Nations reportedly purchased 80,000 MT of Ukraine wheat for Sudan that will be shi...

SPREADS July crush trades down to 84.40c/bu while oilshare firms to 32.49%.   Corn spreads are firmer on short-covering, with July/Sep trading fr...

GOOD MORNING, Prices are mostly higher as traders wait to see if there is follow-through buying activity from China.  Crop ratings were a bit construc...

The new $16 billion Coronavirus Food Assistance Program (CFAP) direct payments from USDA will be unveiled tomorrow. Payments are targeted to be made in lat...

A rally in crude oil and rumors of Chinese crushers needing to book soybeans and soyoil helped the CBOT open firmer. Corn and soybeans traded higher for th...

Jul 20 Corn closed at $3.2075/bushel, up $0.015 from yesterday's close.  Jul 20 Wheat closed at $4.97/bushel, down $0.0325 from yesterday's close.&nbs...

WTO Strategy U.S. Ambassador to the WTO Dennis Shea told Friday’s General Council meeting that addressing the organization’s future should wait...

Corn The corn harvest is still moving at a slow pace as farmers are focused on soybeans. Farmers harvested 1.8 percent of the area last week (versus almost...

THE OPEN July beans:  6 1/2 higher July meal:  .40 lower July soyoil:  48 higher July corn:  2 1/4 higher July wheat:  3 1/2 lower...

Regional News  In Monday’s Crop Monitoring bulletin, the European Commission noted that spring weather, which predominantly featured above-avera...

As noted in the analysis on recession impacts on grain demand, the Great Recession is an imperfect proxy for predicting the impacts on the current global e...

SPREADS July crush trades to 87.59c/bu while oilshare firms to 32.0%.  Jly/Dec corn trades from 12c to 12 1/2c, while July/Sep trades from 3 1/2c out...

GOOD MORNING, Prices are mixed this morning, lower wheat and higher elsewhere.  Outside markets are sharply higher with US stocks up over 600 pts, ind...

As we noted yesterday, the $3 trillion Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions (HEROES) Act amends the CCC Charter Act to allow assistance...

Jul 20 Corn closed at $3.1925/bushel, up $0.0175 from yesterday's close.  Jul 20 Wheat closed at $5.0025/bushel, down $0.02 from yesterday's close.&nb...

The CBOT ended the week mixed on lackluster volume with encouraging near-term demand developments being outweighed by the May WASDE’s large supply fo...

Faux Pas Technical level EU trade officials were meeting today to discuss how to put transatlantic trade relations back on a better course. The success of...

  The attached PDF offers graphical depiction and seasonal analysis of managed money and commercial traders' net position in key agricultural commodit...

The economic impact on agriculture from the global coronavirus pandemic is still unknown but it cannot be good. Some speculate that recovery from a policy...

THE OPEN July beans:  3 higher July meal:  .50 higher July osyoil:  15 higher July corn:  1 1/4 higher July wheat:  3 1/2 higher T...

SPREADS July crush trades to 87.42c/bu while oilshare trades firmer at 31.36%.   July/Sep corn trades from 4c to 4 1/4c, while July /Dec firms in...

GOOD MORNING, Prices are higher this morning on short-covering as we head into the growing season and begin to get the Good/Excellent rating category for c...

Some of the bearish pressure on the market is said to be coming from the uncertainties associated with COVID-19, though there are now more knowns than a fe...

Cattle and hog slaughter is starting to rebound as plants reopen. Last week’s export sales reflect the state of the packing industry; net beef sales...

Jul 20 Corn closed at $3.175/bushel, down $0.0075 from yesterday's close.  Jul 20 Wheat closed at $5.0225/bushel, up $0.005 from yesterday's close.&nb...

Soy Export Sales Highlights Today’s USDA export sales report was positive for soybeans, but not so much for soymeal and soyoil. Maybe China’s s...

Fake Crisis in Food Politicians and populists groups issued a letter to international organizations demanding a “well-organized global effort”...

Wheat:  Net sales of 203,500 metric tons for 2019/2020 were down 17 percent from the previous week and 28 percent from the prior 4-week average. Corn:...

USDA released its May WASDE Tuesday. The May WASDE is always interesting since it includes USDA’s updated projections on U.S. and world supplies and...

THE OPEN July beans:  2 1/2 lower July meal:  1.20 lower July soyoil:  3 higher July corn:  3/4 higher July wheat:  3 lower Prices...

SPREADS July crush trades higher from lows of 75c/bu to 85c/bu with oilshare just under 31.0% to 30.91%.  July /Dec corn trades into 13 1/2c from 14c...

GOOD MORNING, Prices are lower on technical downside activity from yesterday's trade.  Negative trade rhetoric continues between the US/China over the...

The CBOT opened mixed but quickly found solid selling pressure as wheat futures tumbled lower under pressure from yesterday’s WASDE that forecast lar...

Anti-WTO is Bipartisan Republican U.S. Senator Josh Hawley (R-Missouri) introduced a resolution last week to pull the U.S. out of the WTO and now two Democ...

Jul 20 Corn closed at $3.1825/bushel, down $0.04 from yesterday's close.  Jul 20 Wheat closed at $5.0175/bushel, down $0.1275 from yesterday's close.&...

USDA’s forecast for U.S. corn use in 2020/21 may be as over-optimistic as its prediction for 2019/20 corn exports, but at this juncture prices have n...

THE OPEN July beans:  1 1/4 lower July meal:   .10 lower July soyoil:  7 higher July corn:  1 3/4 lower July wheat:  5 1/2 lo...

Macroeconomics Food Inflation Falls Below 15 Percent in April Average food prices for April increased year-on-year by 14.8 percent, down from 18.3 percent...

Russian Grain Markets: 4-8 May 2020 Prices continued to grow in the Asian part of the domestic grain market and moved in different directions in the Europe...

SPREADS July crush firms to 81.74c/bu while oilshare is steady at 31.14%.  July /Dec corn trades into 13 3/4c from 14 1/4c, and values that were out t...

GOOD MORNING, The May WASDE has come and gone, and technically the markets did not break down.  Quite the contrary, as the focus of the report was hug...

USDA Estimates – U.S. soybean oil prices are forecast at 29.0 cents per pound, up 0.5 cents from 2019/20...

USDA Estimates - U.S. soybean meal prices are forecast at $290 per short ton, down $10.00 from 2019/20.  ...

USDA Estimates - outlook for U.S. soybeans is for higher supplies, crush, exports, and lower ending stocks in 2020/21.  The soybean crop is projected...

USDA Estimates – U.S. corn crop is projected at a record 16.0 billion bushels, up from last year on increased area and a return to trend yield. ...

USDA Estimates - U.S. wheat in 2020/21 will have reduced stocks.  The 2020/21 U.S. wheat crop is projected at 1,866 million bushels, down 3 percent fr...

Unlike other animal protein products, dairy was in trouble before the COVID-19 crisis. The problem has been a failure to grow demand as fast as production...

CBOT markets opened on the defensive with traders cautious ahead of the May WASDE. The market was expecting a bearish report and that pressured the soybean...

Today’s WASDE showed USDA’s red meat and broiler production forecast down 5.6 percent from the March WASDE estimates, but only 1.5 percent lowe...

Jul 20 Corn closed at $3.2225/bushel, up $0.0375 from yesterday's close.  Jul 20 Wheat closed at $5.145/bushel, down $0.0275 from yesterday's close.&n...

Trans-Atlantic Trade “Talks” European Trade Commissioner Phil Hogan detailed a trans-Atlantic trade agenda for USTR Robert Lighthizer but parts...

THE OPEN July beans: 1 higher July meal:  .40 higher July soyoil:  2 lower July corn:  1 1/4 lower July wheat:  5 1/2 lower The board o...

Regional Updates MEDITERRANEAN/MIDDLE EAST/NORTH AFRICA  Morocco has announced that the suspension of duty on common wheat will be extended beyond 15...

SPREADS July crush trades to 75.17c/bu while oilshare trades to 31.25%.   Corn spreads weaken this AM with July /Dec trading back out to 16 1/2c...

GOOD MORNING, The May WASDE report will be released at 11:00 central time.  The advertised estimates include higher 20/21 ending stocks for corn with...

The CBOT opened on a higher note with soybeans finding solid support on technical buying as well as rumors of Chinese purchases of U.S. product. Soymeal an...

China Plays Offense We discussed on Friday the worsening outlook for U.S. – China relations and today Beijing one-upped the Trump Administration. Pre...

Jul 20 Corn closed at $3.185/bushel, down $0.0075 from yesterday's close.  Jul 20 Wheat closed at $5.1725/bushel, down $0.0475 from yesterday's close...

Payment Limits: The COVID Food Assistance Program (CFAP) rule to provide direct payments to producers has been submitted by USDA to the Office of Managemen...

Alternative proteins have become the rage in food processing, though there is now an argument that Americans have switched back to more traditional foods a...

Corn Flat prices are low and are even lower for deferred positions. Grain sales are liquidated in Argentine pesos at the official exchange rate of about 65...

THE OPEN July beans:  6 3/4 higher July meal:  1.70 higher July soyoil:  11 higher July corn:  2 3/4 higher July wheat:  1 1/4 hig...

Regional News  The weather across Europe has shifted from an extremely dry pattern earlier this spring to a wetter, more normal pattern in the past tw...

SPREADS July crush trades to 80.92c/bu while oilshare trades to 31.23%.    July/Dec corn trades from 15 1/2c out to 16 1/4.  July/Dec wheat...

GOOD MORNING, Prices are mostly firmer, with beans reaching a one month high overnight and wheat prices turning mixed from higher.  Prices are higher...

U.S. – China Tea Leaves Under the Phase One agreement, U.S. exports of goods to China this year were supposed to increase by 36.6 percent over the ba...

As we have discussed in the past, livestock production has little wiggle room to cope with the processing shutdowns and the demand destruction and volatili...

The CBOT opened on a firm note with funds covering part of their short positions ahead of the May WASDE. Cold weather forecast for most of the Midwest and...

  The attached PDF offers graphical depiction and seasonal analysis of managed money and commercial traders' net position in key agricultural commodit...

The impact of the coronavirus on most national economies is blunt and harmful but especially to those countries that were already poorly structured. Like m...

Jul 20 Corn closed at $3.1925/bushel, up $0.0125 from yesterday's close.  Jul 20 Wheat closed at $5.22/bushel, down $0.005 from yesterday's close.&nbs...

THE OPEN: July beans: 7 higher July meal: 1.20 higher July soyoil: 35 higher July corn: 2 3/4 higher July wheat: 1/2 higher Prices opened as expected wit...

SPREADS July crush trades to 79c/bu, while oilshare firms to 31.44%.  Spreads are firmer with July/Dec corn narrowing into 15c from 16 1/4c, (and valu...

GOOD MORNING,  Prices continue to rebound this week on the back of more Chinese purchases of US goods, as an announced conference call next week betwe...

Wheat:  Net sales of 244,800 metric tons for 2019/2020 were down 48 percent from the previous week and 15 percent from the prior 4-week average. ...

Ambitious F2F The EU is getting closer to releasing its Farm to Fork plan for completely remaking its food system and it is ambitious. So ambitious that it...

Meat packing plants are starting to resume operations, mostly under the President’s executive order which includes new health guidelines from the Cen...

It was a technical runup today that will correct lower but there is a Chinese curveball in play. The fundamentals remain weak – look at today’s...

Jul 20 Corn closed at $3.18/bushel, up $0.0375 from yesterday's close.  Jul 20 Wheat closed at $5.225/bushel, up $0.05 from yesterday's close.  J...

U.S. Soy Export Highlights The week ending 30 April was not a good one for U.S. soy exports. Sales of soybeans, soymeal and soyoil for shipment in 2019/20...

THE OPEN July beans: 4 1/2 higher July meal:  .40 higher July soyoil:  29 higher July corn:  3 1/2 higher July wheat:  6 higher The mar...

It is commonly accepted that without a major crop production disaster in the Northern and/or Southern Hemisphere, the fundamental outlook for U.S. corn, wh...

SPREADS Spreads are firmer with all deliveries gone.  May/July corn trades into 2 1/2c from 3c, bringing some strength to July/Dec which trades into 1...

GOOD MORNING, Prices continue to congest in trading ranges looking for different data, weather, or macro events to move them one way or the other.  Th...

Politics The Danger of Hot Rhetoric and Conspiracy Theories With President Trump and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo continuing to place blame on China for...

Low volume trade left CBOT grain markets to trade lower with little to encourage buyers to make purchases, despite prices being near contract lows. Improvi...

Dis-integrating Global Economy Economists warn that protectionism will slow the global recovery but both governments and companies now view the retreat fro...

Jul 20 Corn closed at $3.1425/bushel, down $0.0275 from yesterday's close.  Jul 20 Wheat closed at $5.175/bushel, down $0.0325 from yesterday's close...

Chicago futures have major agricultural commodities at some of their weakest prices in years and yet exports do not seem to be responding to their appeal...

Russian Grain Markets: 27-30 April 2020 Prices on the domestic grain market continued to grow. Meanwhile on the export market, milling wheat average price...

THE OPEN July beans: down 1 1/2  July meal:   .90 higher July soyoil:  38 lower July corn:  1 1/4 lower July wheat:   4...

SPREADS May/July beans continues to be supported by the lack of deliveries against the May.  July/Nov bean spread chops around supported by recent dem...

GOOD MORNING, Prices are mixed this morning with corn gaining on wheat, and meal on soyoil.  Soyoil futures were supported yesterday by the news of $1...

CBOT trade was slow and mixed for most of Tuesday, with a slight uptick in commercial pricing interest supporting corn, soybean, and SRW wheat values. Fund...

According to USDA’s latest agricultural trade data, the overall ag trade balance in March was negative. The U.S. ran a trade deficit of $502 million...

Jul 20 Corn closed at $3.17/bushel, up $0.015 from yesterday's close.  Jul 20 Wheat closed at $5.2075/bushel, up $0.0125 from yesterday's close. ...

Meat packing has now become part of the 2020 U.S. presidential campaign. Presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden declared worker conditions in these plant...

There is a global abundance of grain and oilseeds and while meat animals are being euthanized due to a lack of slaughter capacity and total production is d...

THE OPEN July beans:  3 3/4 lower July meal:  .50 higher July soyoil;  23 higher July corn: 2 1/2 higher July wheat: 3 1/2 lower Stocks and...

Regional Updates MEDITERRANEAN/MIDDLE EAST/NORTH AFRICA  Egypt reports that local wheat purchases by the government are now at 1 MMT well on the way t...

SPREADS July crush trades to 86.35c/bu while oilshare trades to 31.46%.  July /Dec corn narrows into 17 1/4c from 18c, and vs. values that reached 19c...

GOOD MORNING, Prices are mixed today as higher energies add support to corn and soyoil.  Soyoil futures are higher, but the basis is falling apart, as...

Wrong Negotiations Washington and London kick off two weeks of videoconference trade negotiations this week, hoping to reach an agreement this year. The ga...

The CBOT was called to open weaker after a weekend of favorable weather and expected planting progress in the U.S., combined with welcome rains across Euro...

Part of the COVID-19 relief package was the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans available to small businesses. It was designed to help small businesses...

Jul 20 Corn closed at $3.155/bushel, down $0.03 from yesterday's close.  Jul 20 Wheat closed at $5.195/bushel, up $0.03 from yesterday's close. ...

The World Health Organization’s Eastern Mediterranean Regional Office issued an advisory recently that advised people to consume unsaturated fats suc...

Corn Heavy rains that fell across a large portion of Argentina’s agricultural area last week slowed the arrival of trucks to export ports. The number...

THE OPEN July beans:  12 3/4 lower July meal:  3.20 lower July soyoil:  57 lower July corn:  5 lower July wheat:  7 1/4 lower Pric...

Regional News  Last week, Europe was facing widespread drought conditions and one of the driest 60-day springtime periods since the 1970’s. That...

SPREADS July crush trades to 87c/bu while oilshare moves back below 31.0% to 30.85%.  July /Dec corn trades to 18 3/4c from 18 1/4c, while May/July tr...

GOOD MORNING, Prices are lower as the end of month short-covering is over and good weekend weather probably saw crops going into the ground in a big way.&n...

One of the hallmarks of a bear market is that buyers are patient and wait for rallies to subside, rather than chasing prices higher. That dynamic was on di...

The attached PDF offers graphical depiction and seasonal analysis of managed money and commercial traders' net position in key agricultural commodity marke...

Jul 20 Corn closed at $3.185/bushel, down $0.015 from yesterday's close.  Jul 20 Wheat closed at $5.165/bushel, down $0.0775 from yesterday's close.&n...

Sights on Africa Minxin Pei, a senior fellow at the German Marshall Fund says China gets blamed for practicing economic colonialism in Africa, but there ha...

Now that some political jurisdictions are beginning to open with varying interpretations of safety, it has elevated the question of when is it safe to go b...

The Senate will return to session on Monday. Though the House will not return, debate on a fourth COVID-19 relief package will begin. This likely will be t...

THE OPEN July beans:  5 3/4 lower July meal:  1.00 lower July soyoil:  30 lower July corn:  2 lower July wheat:  4 lower Prices st...

SPREADS July crush trades to 85.54c/bu while oilsahre is slightly weaker trading down to 30.93%.  July /Dec corn firms to 17c from 17 1/2c, while May/...

GOOD MORNING, The markets remain thin as countries are out for holiday.   Argentina is closed today and China is out for a week-long holiday.&nbs...

Lopsided WTO Proposal A new proposal for WTO disciplines on agriculture subsidies is correct in one respect but lopsided in other ways. The International I...

The market opened mixed but ended mostly in the green. Prices were boosted by decent export sales, especially in wheat, very few deliveries against expirin...

Jul 20 Corn closed at $3.2/bushel, up $0.055 from yesterday's close.  Jul 20 Wheat closed at $5.2425/bushel, up $0.0775 from yesterday's close. ...

Re-Opening, but Slower Operating Meat Plants As we reported on Tuesday, the President issued an executive order under the Defense Production Act to keep me...

China Resumes Buying U.S. Soybeans Reuters reports that a Chinese state-owned company purchased at least five cargoes of U.S. soybeans today. The five carg...

THE OPEN July beans: 4 3/4 higher July meal: .20 higher July soyoil:  23 higher July corn:  3/4 lower July wheat:  5 1/2 lower Prices opened...

Wheat:  Net sales of 467,400 metric tons for 2019/2020 were up 91 percent from the previous week and up noticeably from the prior 4-week average. Corn...

We have commented before about the broad negative impact that the worldwide coronavirus pandemic is having on demand for raw materials ranging from copper...

SPREADS The May/July Chicago wheat spread is beginning to invert once more, trading from 3-4c.  July/Dec corn trades out to 19c from 18 1/4c.  Ju...

GOOD MORNING, Prices are mixed to begin the session with wheat contracts lower against the other markets.  Bean and corn prices are steady on the uptu...

The CBOT opened with short covering that lifted corn and soybeans higher early in the day. Firmer crude oil prices were supportive initially. Row crops end...

Economists Lose to Meds Caught your eye?! That is what just happened. Economists know balance sheets and now they are pondering the cost/benefit of a split...

Jul 20 Corn closed at $3.145/bushel, up $0.025 from yesterday's close.  Jul 20 Wheat closed at $5.165/bushel, down $0.095 from yesterday's close. ...

The price of petroleum has plummeted, putting countries that are highly dependent on its export earnings into deep fiscal trouble. This should hinder their...

Livestock China’s Live Hog and Pork Prices Face Pressure, Inventories Up On 28 April, China’s State Council hosted a press conference about the...

THE OPEN July beans:  5 higher July meal:  .50 lower  July soyoil:  35 higher July corn:  2 3/4 higher July wheat:  6 1/4 low...

Russian Grain Markets: 20-24 April 2020 Prices on the domestic grain market continued to grow. Meanwhile, on the export market milling wheat average price...

WPI's monthly publication features a review of the past month's market and policy developments. This issue covers the economic downturn and its impact on a...

SPREADS July crush trades to 84.79c/bu while oilshare is higher trading up to 31.11%.  May/July corn narrows into 8 3/4c from 9 1/2c, while July /Dec...

GOOD MORNING, Prices are mixed as we head into first notice day on Thursday, lower for wheat and higher elsewhere.  Wheat is lower on rains in Europe...

The CBOT was higher overnight on short covering and what looked to be the start of a Turnaround Tuesday. The day session, however, featured aggressive fund...

China is starting to repopulate its swine herd, flying in, via charter planes, live breeding animals from the EU. According to reports, more than 4,000 hea...

Jul 20 Corn closed at $3.12/bushel, down $0.0125 from yesterday's close.  Jul 20 Wheat closed at $5.26/bushel, up $0.0125 from yesterday's close. ...

Corona News Topics of note for today: Trade Agreements: The African Continental Free Trade Area originally scheduled to be implemented on 1 July has been d...

THE OPEN July beans: 1 1/2 higher July meal:  .20 lower July soyoil:  .12 higher July corn:  3/4 lower July wheat:  2 higher A higher-t...

Many respondents to a recent WPI poll said that one impact of the COVID-19 crisis would be increased localization in the food supply. Indeed, there was alr...

Regional Updates MEDITERRANEAN/MIDDLE EAST/NORTH AFRICA  Saudi Arabia’s SAGO purchased 60,000 MT of Ukraine wheat from SALIC (Saudi Agricultural...

SPREADS July crush trades firmer to 85.77c/bu, while oilshare trades to 30.55%.   Corn spreads widen with July/Dec out to 16 3/4c from 15 3/4c.&n...

GOOD MORNING, Prices are slightly firmer to begin the morning despite the fact that crude is once again falling to new lows.  Much of the negative new...

CBOT trade was mostly a continuation of last week with corn falling lower amid declining ethanol demand and expectations for aggressive planting over the w...

Comfortable and Safe Food processors are reporting brisk sales of their processed products. Nestlé’s Hot Pockets are selling lot hot cakes; Ni...

As of last week, according to the Renewable Fuel Association (RFA), 73 of the nation’s 200 ethanol plants are idled and 70 percent are operating at r...

Jul 20 Corn closed at $3.1325/bushel, down $0.0975 from yesterday's close.  Jul 20 Wheat closed at $5.2475/bushel, down $0.0575 from yesterday's close...

Corn So far, 35 percent of Argentina’s planted area is harvested with a weekly progress of just 2 percent. Farmers are still focused on the soybean h...

THE OPEN July beans:  3 lower July meal:  .30 lower July soyoil:  34 lower July corn:  5 1/2 lower July wheat:  4 1/4 lower Prices...

The change in the exchange rate relative to the dollar is currently greatest for the Brazilian real and the Argentine peso. The only other currency that co...

Regional News  Warm, moderately dry conditions were featured across Europe this week with southern parts of the continent receiving better precipitati...

SPREADS July crush trades to 83.21c/bu, while oilshare trades to 30.19%.  Jul/Dec corn weakens back out to 15 1/4c from 13 1/2c, and levels that were...

GOOD MORNING, Trading ranges continue as the mission of the market is to now establish value levels that make sense given the bearish environment brought o...

USDA released its cattle on feed report today; as expected placements were down dramatically to 1.56 million head, the lowest total for March on record. To...

The U.S. primary system may need revision based on the recent voting in Wisconsin, but the national election will and must occur on 3 November. The questio...

Parts of Europe are again too dry this spring raising worries that the wheat crop will be suboptimal. Indeed, some forecasters say this is the new normal i...

The CBOT was mixed/slightly lower overnight with soybeans finding some support from this week’s Chinese purchases while corn sagged under the weight...

The attached PDF offers graphical depiction and seasonal analysis of managed money and commercial traders' net position in key agricultural commodity marke...

Jul 20 Corn closed at $3.23/bushel, down $0.03 from yesterday's close.  Jul 20 Wheat closed at $5.305/bushel, down $0.1425 from yesterday's close.&nbs...

• USDA Estimates – U.S. Cattle on Feed 5 percent below April 1, 2019 • Cattle and calves on feed for the slaughter market in the United Sta...

THE OPEN July beans:  2 3/4 lower July meal:  .50 lower July soyoil:  7 lower July corn:  3/4 lower July wheat:  1/4 lower Prices...

SPREADS July crush trades down to 86c/bu while oilshare dips back below 31.0% to 31.71%.   July/Dec corn trades weaker from 12 1/2c to 13 1/2c.&n...

GOOD MORNING, Prices are slightly lower to begin the session after reaching temporary highs on a market bounce off contract lows.   Seasonally co...

Enforcing WTO Limits  In this extraordinary time of global market turbulence, governments are taking measures to protect industry sectors including ag...

The market bounced off new contract lows from earlier this week and while it usually would buy on a rumor it took reports of Chinese buying interest with a...

The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) issued their report on the Sioux Falls Smithfield plant inspection. It was pretty much as expected based on our discu...

Jul 20 Corn closed at $3.26/bushel, up $0.0125 from yesterday's close.  Jul 20 Wheat closed at $5.4475/bushel, up $0.01 from yesterday's close. ...

Chinese Back to Buying U.S. Soybeans, May Buy Large Amount for Reserves USDA announced a total of 470,000 MT of soybeans has been sold to a Chinese buyer f...

THE OPEN July beans:  12 higher July meal:  1.40 higher July soyoil:  50 higher July corn:  5 higher July wheat:  5 higher The mar...

Can commodities actually be worth less than $0.00? After Monday’s wild trade in the CME May Crude Oil futures contract, we guess they can. As anyone...

SPREADS July crush trades to 87.93c/bu, while oilshare trades to 30.96%.   Spreads firm with July/Dec narrowing into 11 1/4c from 12 3/4c, and vs...

Wheat:  Net sales of 244,700 metric tons for 2019/2020 were up 37 percent from the previous week, but down 22 percent from the prior 4-week average. C...

GOOD MORNING, Prices are higher this morning led by beans and soyoil.  Soyoil follows higher palm and firmer energies. China has been buying beans thi...

With yesterday’s trade showing reversal signals in soybeans and soymeal, the CBOT was called to open higher this morning, which is largely what happe...

The attached PDF shows WPI's summary analysis and intrepretation for the latest Cold Storage report, published 22 April 2020 by the USDA. Briefly...

May 20 Corn closed at $3.175/bushel, up $0.0825 from yesterday's close.  Jul 20 Wheat closed at $5.4375/bushel, down $0.025 from yesterday's close.&nb...

Proponents of stark structural changes are trying to use the current COVID-19 crisis as leverage to achieve their policy goals, but it is unlikely to succe...

International organizations are warning that COVID-19 and the associated economic recession will increase hunger in poorer countries. To quote World Food P...

Public Health  Recurring Cases, Unanswered Questions Continue to Linger With China gradually returning to a state of normalcy, questions about recurri...

Russian Grain Markets: 13-17 April 2020 Two factors influenced development of prices on the domestic market: sales from Public Intervention Fund were pushi...

THE OPEN July beans:  4 1/2 higher July meal:  .50 higher July soyoil:  25 higher July corn:  5 1/2 higher July wheat:  1 3/4 lowe...

SPREADS July crush is lower at 89.12c/bu, while oilshare trades at 30.45%.  Bean spreads are firmer with July/Nov narrowing into 5 1/2c from 8 1/2c, w...

GOOD MORNING, After placing new contract lows or low -end prices for ranges, prices are firmer this morning, (except for wheat), on a combination of bargai...

According to the latest Short-term Outlook from the European Commission, the agrifood sector on the Continent has been impacted by the economic shock, lock...

May 20 Corn closed at $3.0925/bushel, down $0.05 from yesterday's close.  Jul 20 Wheat closed at $5.4625/bushel, down $0.0125 from yesterday's close.&...

Trade at the CBOT was marked by early steep declines that eventually gave way to a short covering/profit taking bounce. Corn, soybeans, and soymeal all pos...

Farmer Friendly Trump There is no industry hurt more by President Donald Trump than agriculture, and there is no modern president that has embraced agricul...

Packing Plant Hot Spots As Matt Herrington reported last night, meat packing plants are the new COVID-19 hotspots. The CDC is expected to issue its report...

THE OPEN July beans:  11 1/4 lower July meal:  2.70 lower July soyoil:  77 lower July corn:  8 lower July wheat:  1/4 higher The c...

Regional Updates MEDITERRANEAN/MIDDLE EAST/NORTH AFRICA The first day of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan begins 24 April. Business is always more difficul...

SPREADS July crush trades down to 91.78c/bu while oilshare falls to 30.69%.  Spreads are weaker with July/Dec trading out to 17c from 14 1/2c, and val...

GOOD MORNING, Prices are lower across the board to begin the morning as funds continue to put on new short positions in lieu of weaker macros, lack of dema...

The biggest news of the day is the fact that May crude oil futures traded to negative prices, posting a daily low of negative $40.34 (-$40.32) before settl...

Imperfect Petroleum Relationship The assertion has been that petroleum is a finite resource whereas agricultural commodity production can always increase t...

Washington and Brasilia have agreed to expedite negotiations under the Brazil-U.S. Commission on Economic and Trade Relations with the goal of completing a...

May 20 Corn closed at $3.1425/bushel, down $0.08 from yesterday's close.  Jul 20 Wheat closed at $5.475/bushel, up $0.1375 from yesterday's close.&nbs...

Corn Despite the fact that farmers are still primarily focused on the soybean harvest, the corn harvest advanced 6 percent last week. The progress was larg...

THE OPEN July beans:  5 3/4 lower July meal:  1.00 lower July soyoil:  31 lower July corn:  3 1/2 lower July wheat:  18 higher The...

Regional News The dryness across Europe is easing with showers falling across Spain, western France, and Eastern Europe last week. For most of Europe, the...

On Friday as part of the daily White House COVID19 briefing, Secretary Perdue announced the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program (CFAP).  It will come...

SPREADS July crush trades top 96.08c/bu while oilshare trades to 31.09%.  Corn spreads are weaker with July/Dec trading out to 15c from 13 1/2c. ...

GOOD MORNING, The markets are mixed this morning as wheat is sharply higher against lower prices elsewhere on the board.   Wheat prices are highe...

CBOT grains and livestock markets were mostly higher today with short covering the dominant theme in corn. Wheat futures sold off early in the day but foun...

The attached PDF offers graphical depiction and seasonal analysis of managed money and commercial traders' net position in key agricultural commodity marke...

May 20 Corn closed at $3.2225/bushel, up $0.025 from yesterday's close.  Jul 20 Wheat closed at $5.3375/bushel, up $0.0325 from yesterday's close.&nbs...

Coming out of the food shortages of WWII, Roger Waters asks in the Pink Floyd album Another Brick in the Wall, “How can you have any pudding if you d...

Macroeconomic trends have always had some impact on agricultural production, demand, trade and values, but usually much less so than on other commodities s...

Dollars versus Disease Part of the debate over action against the coronavirus has always been health versus economics. The decision to err on the side of h...

A friend of WPI’s and a former colleague to some of us, Hanns Kuttner is a health policy analyst and senior fellow at the prestigious Hudson Institut...

THE OPEN  July beans:  1 3/4 higher July meal:  1.10 higher July soyoil;  2 higher July corn:  2 higher July wheat:  1 lower...

SPREADS Crush firms to 99.91c/bu, while oilshare trades to 31.0%.  Spreads are generally firmer with July/Dec corn narrowing into 13 3/4c from 15c.&nb...

GOOD MORNING, The markets are mixed as we head into the weekend, mostly higher on short-covering, wheat lower on long liquidation.  Higher markets nee...

Extraordinary policy initiatives are being deployed in these rarest of times. New York City has reportedly sought charitable contributions toward keeping i...

The idling of several packing plants is now having a trickledown impact through the value chain. After Smithfield closed its Sioux Falls pork packing plant...

May 20 Corn closed at $3.1975/bushel, up $0.005 from yesterday's close.  May 20 Wheat closed at $5.2975/bushel, down $0.105 from yesterday's close.&nb...

Markets are rational and amid all the uncertainty the current bearishness is reasonable. There are also fundamental reasons for the current selloff. It mak...

Larger Than Expected NOPA Soybean Crush Total in March Yesterday’s NOPA soybean crush report for March came in well above the average estimate of ana...

THE OPEN July beans:  2 lower        July meal:  steady July soyoil:  16 lower July corn:  1/4 lower July wheat:&nb...

Wheat:  Net sales of 178,300 metric tons for 2019/2020 were down 31 percent from the previous week and 49 percent from the prior 4-week average. ...

SPREADS July crush firms again to 98c/bu, while oilshare tests 31.0%.   May/July meal widens out to $4.60 from $3.80, while July/Dec trades from...

GOOD MORNING, The markets are mixed this morning and haven't moved much from yesterday's settlement.   Theme of the markets is continued selling...

Today’s CBOT trade was dominated by poor retail sales and the weekly EIA ethanol and gasoline production/stocks report that proved bearish for both m...

Covid Recovery About one-tenth of American workers have lost their jobs including at least 475,000 in New York City alone. Some believe the actual number i...

May 20 Corn closed at $3.1925/bushel, down $0.0675 from yesterday's close.  May 20 Wheat closed at $5.4025/bushel, down $0.085 from yesterday's close...

Today’s U.S. Energy Information Agency (EIA) report verified the downward direction of ethanol production and thus corn demand in the wake of COVID-1...

Public Health  Routine Temperature Checks, Social Monitoring Define New Normal Life in China’s mega coastal cities continues to inch back to a n...

THE OPEN July beans:  1 3/4 lower July meal:  2.90 higher July soyoil:  22 lower July corn:  1 3/4 lower July wheat:  11 3/4 lower...

Russian Grain Markets: 6-10 April 2020 Wheat prices on the domestic Russian market increased in the European part of Russia but decreased in Siberia. Meanw...

SPREADS Crush is firmer this morning with July trading up to 94c/bu, and oilshare correcting down to 31.23%.  July/Nov beans trades out to 10 1/4c fro...

GOOD MORNING, Prices are mixed this morning with a larger break in wheat, and a bounce in meal as traders unwind previous buy soyoil/sell meal spread trade...

Weakness in soymeal and the soy complex was the major feature at the CBOT today. The soy complex is increasingly worried about the demand implications of t...

Many are calling for paradigm shifts in most societal functions and a lot of changes are already happening, but government will slow farming’s abilit...

Yesterday we wrote about the forthcoming relief funds for COVID-19; today’s press stories are laying out the same scenario based on reports of what i...

May 20 Corn closed at $3.26/bushel, down $0.055 from yesterday's close.  May 20 Wheat closed at $5.4875/bushel, down $0.0625 from yesterday's close.&n...

THE OPEN July beans:  1 lower July meal:  1.60 lower July soyoil:  5 lower July corn:  1/4 higher July wheat:  6 1/4 lower The fea...

The Purdue University/CME Group’s Ag Economy Barometer survey of farmers in March showed their economic sentiment dropping 47 points (28 percent), th...

Regional Updates MEDITERRANEAN/MIDDLE EAST/NORTH AFRICA  Corn and wheat imports in the region could find sourcing more difficult with Romania banning...

SPREADS July crush trades to 83c/bu, while oilshare is a steady 31.59% item.  Corn spreads are slightly firmer, with July /Dec trading into 13 1/2c fr...

GOOD MORNING,  Prices are mixed this morning with some short-covering activity in corn, and continued long liquidation in beans and meal.  Weathe...

The markets were called mostly lower after the long holiday weekend with funds continuing to be net sellers and coronavirus news remaining bearish for comm...

There have been plenty of concerns voiced over the future of the global trading system post-COVID-19. The Trump Administration receives plenty of ink for s...

May 20 Corn closed at $3.315/bushel, down $0.0025 from yesterday's close.  May 20 Wheat closed at $5.55/bushel, down $0.015 from yesterday's close.&nb...

Logistics Truck movements have normalized since the first few weeks of the quarantine when uncertainty and divergent local regulations slowed the arrival o...

The responses and repercussions of the COVID-19 spread continue at a breakneck speed, one of the latest being the indefinite shut down of the JBS pork plan...

The stay at home orders and fear of a pandemic caused a run on groceries. Several countries-imposed food export restrictions and collectively this elicited...

THE OPEN July beans:  1 1/2 lower July meal:  1.40 lower July soyoil:  30 lower July corn:  2 1/2 lower July wheat:  5 higher Pric...

Regional News Food security continues to be the primary market driver for Europe and most other regions around the world. Efforts to increase (at least per...

The attached PDF offers graphical depiction and seasonal analysis of managed money and commercial traders' net position in key agricultural commodity marke...

SPREADS July crush falls to 84.65c/bu while oilshare remains a firm 31.73%.  July/Nov bean spread is slightly weaker trading from 4 1/4c to 5 1/2c car...

GOOD MORNING, Prices are mixed to begin the morning.   Wheat is higher this morning with the USDA reporting a sale last Friday of 165,000 mt of H...

Tomorrow, 10 April is a holiday for the CBOT/CME markets in observance of Good Friday. Please note that our office will also be closed. The next Ag Perspec...

Silver Lining It is easy to be depressed amid the COVID-19 crisis. Predictions include: Global agricultural trade will shrink 12.7 percent this year. G...

USDA’s soyoil outlook – is for U.S. soybean oil price projected at 30.0 cents per pound, down 1.5 cents reflecting increased production and end...

The April WASDE report has been described historically as a non-event. Today’s report was bearish, but prices rose for the most part because it merel...

USDA’s soymeal outlook – is for increased U.S. soybean crush on higher soybean meal exports and increased domestic disappearance.  Domesti...

USDA’s soybean outlook - U.S. soybean supply and use changes for 2019/20 include lower exports, seed use, and residual use, higher crush, and higher...

May 20 Corn closed at $3.3175/bushel, up $0.0175 from yesterday's close.  May 20 Wheat closed at $5.565/bushel, up $0.0825 from yesterday's close.&nbs...

USDA’s corn outlook – is for reduced U.S. imports, greater feed and residual use, lower food, seed, and industrial use, and corn larger stocks...

Today’s WASDE showed red meat and poultry production down 1.1 percent from the March WASDE estimates, but still 3.3 percent higher than 2019. &n...

USDA’s wheat outlook – is for lower U.S. exports, reduced domestic use, and increased ending stocks.  The NASS Grain Stocks report, issued...

Soy Export Sales Highlights The week ending 2 April had to be a disappointing one for exporters of U.S. soybeans and soyoil, but not so much for soymeal. T...

THE OPEN July beans:  1 3/4 higher July meal:  .80 lower July soyoil:  13 higher July corn:  2 1/2 higher July wheat:  5 3/4 highe...

In 2019/20 Russia will again be the world’s largest wheat exporter. This will be the third year in a row that Russia can claim that title. For those...

SPREADS July crush falls to 94.65c/bu while oilshare trades to 31.70%.   July/Dec corn slightly weaker today, traidng out to 14 1/4c from 13 3/4c...

GOOD MORNING, Prices are mostly higher heading into the April WASDE report to be released at 11:00 Am Chicago time.  Expectations include reduced worl...

The CBOT opened higher with some mild, continued short covering that eventually gave way to more bearish pressure. Position squaring heading into the April...

U.S. ethanol production is plunging, and producers are demanding a fix. Some sources say that this week was the lowest ethanol output and highest stocks on...

May 20 Corn closed at $3.3/bushel, down $0.015 from yesterday's close.  May 20 Wheat closed at $5.4825/bushel, down $0.01 from yesterday's close. ...

Animal protein prices are mostly declining even though there was a consumer rush to hoard supplies ahead of COVID-19 lockdowns. An economic recession gener...

Public Health  City of Wuhan Reopened for Business China’s central government, with much fanfare, lifted the more than two-month long lockdown o...

THE OPEN May beans:  1 1/2 higher May meal;  1.50 higher May soyoil:  10 lower May corn:  2 higher May wheat:  2 1/2 higher The ma...

Russian Grain Markets: 30 March – 3 April 2020 Grain prices on the domestic Russian market increased but at a slower rate, except for Siberia where p...