Brazil Disses G20 Some developing countries came out last week for more generous WTO terms, including expanded special and differential treatment and other forms of so-called policy space to avoid market-based policies. Sounding like an echo of the Trump Administration, the U.S. - leaning Bolsonaro government said that big emerging countries do not need special and differential treatment. The fracture from within the G20 shows that the U.S. challenge to self-designation of developing country status and the exemptions to free trade requirements attendant with that status has struck a nerve. Heretofore, all countries large and small defended self-designation but eventually there will be a realization of its inequity to the smaller economies...
What You Need to Know Today: Commodities were mostly lower across the board today after yesterday’s Federal Reserve meeting hinted at a potential interest rate hike later in 2026. The dollar index reached its highest level in over a year, and a strong dollar makes U.S. agricultural expor...
Tomorrow is the Juneteenth federal holiday, and the USDA, along with the rest of the federal government and the CME, will be closed, so the monthly Cattle on Feed report was released a day early. The total number of cattle on feed in feedlots with 1,000 head or more capacity on 1 June amounted...
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.