Beef packer margins deteriorated sharply last week, with estimated net margins falling to -$330.80/hd, down $60.58/hd week over week. The Choice cutout held nearly flat at $365.62/cwt, but fed cattle prices continued to climb, with live steers at $246.91/cwt and dressed prices surging to $387.9...
The CBOT turned lower on Monday, with the back-and-forth action of the Supreme Court and President Trump regarding tariffs on foreign imports driving volatility. For the ag markets, the biggest impact of the SCOTUS ruling seems to be doubts that China will adhere to its soybean purchase plan, a...
Tariff Confusion Fun Reactions to the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling that general use of tariffs is not within the President’s authority under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) have been wildly diverse. Mass media headlines initially celebrated the “smack do...
Illuminating the value of technical research
On behalf of a commodity producer organization, WPI evaluated the outputs from a project that featured a $5 million investment into technical research over multiple years. WPI’s team captured the results of this extensive effort and synthesized them for presentation to the organization’s governing board; among the findings uncovered and presented for the first time was the development of genomic traits proven, via rigorous testing, to provide crop yield advantages of 50 percent or more to U.S. farmers in times of drought. Capturing measurable results from long-term efforts can be challenging. Educating clients on the dynamics of success measurement when quantifiable results are not readily available requires deep client-consultant collaboration and an ability to consider both near- and long-term client aspirations with market/policy dynamics – attributes that WPI brings to every consulting engagement.