Monthly Summary September Surge Driven by Soybean Complex, Palm Olein, and Corn With China’s economy rapidly returning to pre-COVID-19 levels in the third quarter, trading in agricultural related contracts surged in September by almost 34 percent. The combined volume for the nine agricultural commodity futures categories totaled 138.03 million lots, a year-on-year increase of nearly 178 percent compared with September 2019. Soymeal was the top commodity with a total monthly volume of 38.6 million, a monthly increase of more than 52 percent. It was followed by palm olein, corn, and soyoil with monthly volumes of 27.3 million, 25.8 million, and nearly 23 million lots, respectively. September’s activity represented a...
What You Need to Know Today: Russia rejected calls for a ceasefire in the Black Sea, including a proposal to halt attacks on civilian shipping that could help restore grain flows from Ukrainian ports. Tyson Foods announced plans to permanently close its Joslin, Illinois, beef processing facili...
What You Need to Know Today: Wholesale inflation was flat in July, with the Producer Price Index (PPI) unchanged versus expectations for a 0.2 percent increase. Core PPI rose 0.2 percent, also below expectations. The softer inflation data has reduced the odds of a September interest rate incre...
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.