U.S. antitrust law is complicated, but current efforts to block a merger between grocery retailers Albertsons and Kroger may not fit the bill. Current trig...
Articles
Black Sea Regional Analysis
Russian Grain Markets: 16–20 September 2024 Russian grain markets remained stagnant as export demand is weak and domestic demand is even weaker. More...
Market Commentary: Soybeans, Soyoil Extend Rallies; Wheat, Corn Fall as Short-Covering Fades
The CBOT saw diverging trading patterns on Tuesday with soybeans and soyoil continuing their rallies and extending gains to new highs. China is rumored to...
Hogs and Pigs Report Preview
On Thursday, USDA will release its quarterly Hogs and Pigs report for the June through August quarter showing the inventory as of 1 September. Pre-report e...
Tariff Spiral and WTO Failure; Nuclear Power and GMO’s
Tariff Spiral and WTO Failure Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump now says he will impose 200 percent tariffs on farm machinery from John Deere sh...
Energy and Agriculture
Global agriculture produces energy, with 23 percent of ethanol produced from sugarcane, and another 7 percent produced from the molasses byproduct of proce...
Summary of Futures
Dec 24 Corn closed at $4.1175/bushel, down $0.0175 from yesterday's close. Dec 24 Wheat closed at $5.78/bushel, down $0.045 from yesterday's close.&n...
Middle East, Mediterranean and Africa Regional Analysis
Regional Updates MEDITERRANEAN/MIDDLE EAST/NORTH AFRICA/AFRICA – MEA REGION Bangladesh reports that it will be importing 400,000 MT of wheat immediat...
Market Commentary: CBOT Rallies on Weather, Short Covering; Monetary Policy Turns Bullish Commodities
The CBOT jumped sharply higher to start the new week with wheat leading the move with overnight strength. Fund short covering drove much of the day&r...
Hypocritical on Process Standards; Buy America Bust; Politics of the Port Strike
Hypocritical on Process Standards EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen will make a decision this week on implementation of the EU Deforestation Reg...
Summary of Futures
Dec 24 Corn closed at $4.135/bushel, up $0.1175 from yesterday's close. Dec 24 Wheat closed at $5.825/bushel, up $0.14 from yesterday's close. ...
Pending Port Strikes: U.S. East and Gulf Coasts and Vancouver Canada
With a pending 1 October strike deadline on the U.S. East and Gulf Coasts by the International Longshoreman’s Association (ILA), the U.S. Department...
Running Out of Protein
Europe ran out of energy when the Russian attack on Ukraine forced it to reduce imports from Russia. Europe lacks the ability to defend itself despite Russ...
European Market Analysis
Regional News WPI sources in Brussels say it’s increasingly likely that the EU Deforestation Regulations will be delayed until the region can d...
Mercosur Regional Analysis
Argentina Economic/Policy Update Argentine President Javier Milei, in a public speech this week, presented the 2025 budget that will be sent to Congr...
CFTC COT Report Analysis
Funds activity in the ag futures markets was more subdued last week than expected. Funds were slight net buyers in soybeans, soymeal, corn, and across the...
Cattle on Feed
U.S. Cattle on feed for the slaughter totaled 11.2 million head on September 1, 2024 - which was 1 percent above September 1, 2023. Placements in fee...
Market Commentary: Wheat Retraces; Soyoil Surges
Wheat was the big gainer last week but this week it gave up most of those gains. And soyoil was last week’s biggest loser but it rose to the top this...
Too Bad for Ag, Tariff Impacts; Climate and Agriculture
Too Bad for Ag In a surprise from the Biden Administration, Deputy National Security Advisor Daleep Singh said that the U.S. should negotiate more sectoral...
Neutral Cattle on Feed Report
USDA released the monthly Cattle on Feed report today. All categories came in near expectations, making the report neutral. August placements at 1.98 mill...
Summary of Futures
Dec 24 Corn closed at $4.0175/bushel, down $0.04 from yesterday's close. Dec 24 Wheat closed at $5.685/bushel, up $0.03 from yesterday's close. ...
Weaker Consumer Finances Darken Economic Outlook, Despite Interest Rate Cuts
The past two weeks have seen the typical influx of macroeconomic data releases, most of which helped prompt the Federal Reserve to issue its 50-bps interes...
Market Commentary: Wheat Falls Amid Weak Russian Prices; Soyoil Rises on Exports; Macro Markets Boost Cattle
Markets and traders were broadly enthusiastic following the U.S. Federal Reserve’s 50-bps cut to its target interest rate on Wednesday, but you would...
Oilseed Highlights: Bouncing Off Seasonal Lows
The Market U.S. soybeans have a nearly $1/bushel advantage as Brazilian basis moves higher. The result is that last week’s export sales were substant...
How Not to Resuscitate; Micromanagement
How Not to Resuscitate The European Parliament rejected the Commission’s proposal to allow tolerance levels for pesticide residues on some imported f...
Export Sales
Export Sales and Shipments for September 6-12, 2024 Wheat: Net sales of 246,300 metric tons (MT) for 2024/2025 were down 48 percent from the previous...
Summary of Futures
Dec 24 Corn closed at $4.0575/bushel, down $0.07 from yesterday's close. Dec 24 Wheat closed at $5.655/bushel, down $0.1025 from yesterday's close.&n...
Livestock Roundup: Cattle on Feed Preview
USDA will release its Cattle on Feed report tomorrow; the pre-report consensus analysts’ estimate is for the inventory of cattle on feed as of 1 Sept...
Market Commentary: Soy Complex Rises on China Rumors, Brazil Drought; Hogs Extend Rally
Soybeans saw the liveliest action of the major grain/oilseed contracts on Wednesday with a strong, 18-cent overnight rally developing on rumors of Chinese...
Summary of Futures
Dec 24 Corn closed at $4.1275/bushel, up $0.0025 from yesterday's close. Dec 24 Wheat closed at $5.7575/bushel, up $0 from yesterday's close. N...
High Cost of Food; Sick Man in Europe
High Cost of Food Gallop’s annual Work and Education survey found that Americans have soured on the restaurant and grocery business. They still love...
More Food, and Fewer Children
Few philanthropists are as focused on hunger in Sub-Saharan Africa than Bill Gates. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has spent billions of dolla...
Black Sea Regional Analysis
Russian Grain Markets: 9–13 September 2024 Russian grain markets remained stable with only corn slightly bullish, possibly showing the first real sig...
Market Commentary: Grains Drift Sideways as Harvest Looms; Livestock Rally on Strong Cash Trade
The CBOT was mostly sideways on Tuesday with funds still paring back a few shorts in the corn and soy complex while resuming some light selling in wheat fu...
Three Wheat Peculiarity
The December SRW and HRW contracts closed lower today, while December HRS added value. These three wheat contracts often move in unison, but not always. An...
New EU Commission; America First Channels Sovereignty
New EU Commission European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen made known her nominees to run the government in Brussels and the trade and agricultur...
Ad Hoc Farm Bill in the Works?
The current underlying farm bill (extended for a year last year) expires in 13 days. Another extension is likely, but there is also some movement on Capito...
Summary of Futures
Dec 24 Corn closed at $4.125/bushel, up $0.0175 from yesterday's close. Dec 24 Wheat closed at $5.7575/bushel, down $0.0275 from yesterday's close.&n...
Middle East, Mediterranean and Africa Regional Analysis
Regional Updates MEDITERRANEAN/MIDDLE EAST/NORTH AFRICA/AFRICA – MEA REGION Egypt’s GASC is reported to have arranged a private purchase of 430...
Market Commentary: Bears Win as CBOT Emerges from Post-WASDE Weekend
The CBOT emerged from the post-WASDE weekend with bears gaining the upper hand in a relatively light news day. Wheat was the big loser for the day as profi...
Future of EU Agriculture; Future of U.S. Agriculture
Future of EU Agriculture Mercosur: Newly appointed French Prime Minister Michel Barnier reiterated French opposition to a trade agreement with Mercosu...
Summary of Futures
Dec 24 Corn closed at $4.1075/bushel, down $0.025 from yesterday's close. Dec 24 Wheat closed at $5.785/bushel, down $0.1625 from yesterday's close.&...
SUSTAINS Act Under the Radar
Today is the final day to submit comments to the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) under a request for information (RFI) on the Sponsoring USDA...
Mercosur Regional Analysis
Wheat The Rosario Grain Exchange reports that wheat fields in the central, northern, and western parts of the planted area are suffering from a lack...
European Market Analysis
Regional News Last Thursday, a Ukrainian merchant vessel carrying grain and bound for Egypt was struck by a Russian missile in the Black Sea waters n...
CFTC COT Report Analysis
Funds continued covering shorts across the grain and oilseed complex through last Tuesday as futures trended firmer heading into the September WASDE. The m...
Market Commentary: It Was Wheat’s Week
Russia’s Vladimir Putin warned that Ukraine using Western long-range missiles to attack inside his country would bring NATO into the war. That and hi...
Hurricane Francine Energy Production Disruptions
The WTI Crude oil futures saw its third consecutive day of gains from the impacts of Hurricane Francine in the Gulf of Mexico and the contract remains up o...
Summary of Futures
Dec 24 Corn closed at $4.1325/bushel, up $0.0725 from yesterday's close. Dec 24 Wheat closed at $5.9475/bushel, up $0.1625 from yesterday's close.&nb...
WPI’s Post-WASDE Quarterly Corn, Soy Outlook
Now that the WASDE has come and gone, it’s time for the commodity market analyst community to argue about why USDA’s projections are wrong and...
WASDE Wheat
WPI offers the following PDF of key supply and demand tables and charts relating to the USDA’s latest WASDE report. This is not an all-inclusive comp...
WASDE Soybeans
WPI offers the following PDF of key supply and demand tables and charts relating to the USDA’s latest WASDE report. This is not an all-inclusive comp...
WASDE Corn
WPI offers the following PDF of key supply and demand tables and charts relating to the USDA’s latest WASDE report. This is not an all-inclusive comp...
Export Sales
Export Sales and Shipments for August 30-September 5, 2024 Wheat: Net sales of 474,900 metric tons (MT) for 2024/2025 were up 40 percent from the pre...
Market Commentary: USDA Confirms Record Corn, Soy Yields but Ending Stocks Fall
For a WASDE report that confirmed record-large corn and soybean yields, futures’ reaction to the data was relatively muted. Those hoping for a festiv...
Summary of Futures
Dec 24 Corn closed at $4.06/bushel, up $0.0125 from yesterday's close. Dec 24 Wheat closed at $5.785/bushel, down $0.0075 from yesterday's close.&nbs...
Farm Bill Force; Black Sea Risks; Food Price Competition
Farm Bill Force A coalition of 300 agricultural groups sent a letter to Congressional leaders urging passage of a new farm bill. Some on Capitol Hill see i...
Livestock Roundup: WASDE Trims Cattle Price Outlook
The big news on the livestock side of today’s WASDE was USDA’s reduction in the fed cattle price forecast. Prices for 2024 were trimmed by $3/...
Oilseed Highlights: WASDE Affirms a Sideways Market
The Market Today’s USDA WASDE report should drive discussion, but it was mostly neutral. The 20-day moving average has begun to rise and November soy...
WASDE Soybeans
WASDE SOYBEANS: USDA increased their estimate for global soybean ending stocks by 0.3 million tons to 134.6 million as higher stocks for Argentina and Cana...