Regional News The biggest news in the European markets over the past two weeks was the EU-UK free trade deal. The deal means that trade of most commodities will continue tariff-free, avoiding a potential massive disruption in global markets. There will still be extra transaction costs, however, which are estimated at 2.5-5 percent for grains and oilseeds. European and Black Sea markets have been generally quiet in the past two weeks with the Christmas and New Year’s holidays interrupting trade. Weather has been mostly favorable for crop development across the region, with the current forecast featuring below-normal temperatures for western Europe and above-average temperatures for eastern Europe, Ukraine, and Russia. Fra...
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...
Key Market Insights Geopolitical Limbo: Geopolitical risk remained a key driver across global commodity markets today. President Trump stated that the Iran memorandum of understanding is not yet final and warned that military action could resume if negotiations fail. Both sides continue w...
From WPI Consulting
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.