World Perspectives

BDI is Fishy

As fear of the coronavirus causes money to rush out of equities and commodities, why are bulk shipping rates rising? The transportation segment is complex. Airlines are forecast to take a $100 billion dollar hit this year as their traffic drops, but trucking keeps trucking along. The Baltic Dry Index (BDI) measuring bulk cargo shipping rates hit a peak in September 2019 and then slid lower, until now.  The price of oil, a key ingredient in global shipping, is at a 12-month low. There is no competition from cruise ships for bunker fuel because they are being idled. Yet after hitting a low of 411 on 10 February, the BDI has been rising, hitting 599 yesterday. The industry says it is because of improved supply/demand balances. Iron ore...

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WPI Grain Transportation Report

Dry bulk markets are waiting to see how rates will react now that China’s Golden Week and South Korea’s holidays are both over. The Golden Week celebrations ended on Wednesday and, so far, dry bulk rates have not seen much upward movement. Panamax and Capesize vessels are slightly f...

feed-grains soy-oilseeds wheat

Market Commentary: Chop and Drop

Markets continue to chop around looking for some determinant of direction. In the absence of official reports, yesterday’s firmer PNW soybean basis levels provided a brief uplift but that faltered today. China gets mentioned as a possible source of the phantom demand but that seems politi...

feed-grains soy-oilseeds wheat

Summary of Futures

Dec 25 Corn closed at $4.1825/bushel, down $0.0375 from yesterday's close.  Dec 25 Wheat closed at $5.065/bushel, down $0.0075 from yesterday's close.  Nov 25 Soybeans closed at $10.2225/bushel, down $0.0725 from yesterday's close.  Dec 25 Soymeal closed at $276.9/short ton, down...

WPI Grain Transportation Report

Dry bulk markets are waiting to see how rates will react now that China’s Golden Week and South Korea’s holidays are both over. The Golden Week celebrations ended on Wednesday and, so far, dry bulk rates have not seen much upward movement. Panamax and Capesize vessels are slightly f...

feed-grains soy-oilseeds wheat

Market Commentary: Chop and Drop

Markets continue to chop around looking for some determinant of direction. In the absence of official reports, yesterday’s firmer PNW soybean basis levels provided a brief uplift but that faltered today. China gets mentioned as a possible source of the phantom demand but that seems politi...

feed-grains soy-oilseeds wheat

Summary of Futures

Dec 25 Corn closed at $4.1825/bushel, down $0.0375 from yesterday's close.  Dec 25 Wheat closed at $5.065/bushel, down $0.0075 from yesterday's close.  Nov 25 Soybeans closed at $10.2225/bushel, down $0.0725 from yesterday's close.  Dec 25 Soymeal closed at $276.9/short ton, down...

livestock

Livestock Roundup: China is Top Beef Importer of Brazilian and Australian Beef in September

Today was WASDE day, however, due to the government shutdown, that report has been suspended, as have been the reports usually highlighted below. Brazil's beef exports to China rose 38.3 percent in September from a year earlier, reaching 187,340 MT, according to the Brazilian industry group Abr...

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From WPI Consulting

Forecasting developments in production agriculture

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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