Earlier this week we declared 10 June to be National Swaps Day. Banking institutions that are not otherwise considered swaps dealers or major swaps participants had to clear swaps transactions through an officially designated organization by that date. By bringing banks, including U.S. branches of foreign banks under this requirement, the large majority of the formerly unregulated over-the-counter (OTC) U.S. swaps market must now be cleared through a CFTC-approved and regulated clearing facility. This "sea change" for the OTC swaps market fulfills a provision of the Dodd-Frank financial reform legislation. This clearing requirement goes along with another requirement that swaps with similar characteristics must also be transparently trade...
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
Weighing in on strategic realignment
WPI’s team was retained by the governing board of a U.S. industry organization to review a decision, reached by vote, to invest significant assets into the development and management of an export trading company. WPI’s team conducted a formal review of this decision and concluded that the current level of market saturation would limit the benefits of the investment. Based on WPI’s analysis and recommended actions, the board subsequently reversed its decision and undertook a strategic planning effort to identify more impactful investments. On behalf of numerous clients, WPI has not only assisted in identifying strategic paths but also advised their implementation.