World Perspectives

Fixing the WTO; The Winner is Ag

Fixing the WTO The 13th Ministerial Conference last month in Abu Dhabi was yet another failure by the WTO. Now Singapore has proposed a retreat to discuss fundamental fixes needed to stop the long string of failures. Ultimately, the structural problems of the WTO involve one country, one vote and the necessity of consensus. Gambia with just 1.4 million people and a $2 billion economy has the same voting power as China with 1.4 billion people and $17.7 trillion in GDP. None of the other Bretton Woods institutions have this flaw. The UN is prejudiced toward the more powerful countries via the Security Council. The bias of the IMF and World Bank is toward economic size and capital contributions.  The majority involves poorer countries a...

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Summary of Futures

Mar 26 Corn closed at $4.2575/bushel, down $0.025 from yesterday's close.  Mar 26 Wheat closed at $5.2775/bushel, down $0.1025 from yesterday's close.  Mar 26 Soybeans closed at $10.6025/bushel, down $0.04 from yesterday's close.  Mar 26 Soymeal closed at $294.5/short ton, up $0...

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India’s Catbird Seat; Targeting Cuba; Good and Bad GMOs

India’s Catbird Seat China is a state-run economy with formidable output, utilizing abundant, lower-cost labor. India is a democracy with a massive low-cost labor pool and countless restrictions on imports. The EU and now the U.S. have completed very different trade agreements with India,...

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Mar 26 Corn closed at $4.2575/bushel, down $0.025 from yesterday's close.  Mar 26 Wheat closed at $5.2775/bushel, down $0.1025 from yesterday's close.  Mar 26 Soybeans closed at $10.6025/bushel, down $0.04 from yesterday's close.  Mar 26 Soymeal closed at $294.5/short ton, up $0...

livestock

Meat Producer Price Index

Wholesale meat prices fell across the board in December, seasonally adjusted, according to Producer Price Index (PPI) data released Friday by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The overall PPI for final demand, which measures the end stage of production, rose 0.5 percent last month, driven by high...

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From WPI Consulting

Infrastructure investment due diligence

On behalf of a Canadian oilseed processer WPI's team provided market analysis, econometric modeling and financial due diligence in support of a $24 million-dollar investment in a Ukrainian crush plant. Consistent with WPI's findings, local production to supply the plant and the facility's output have expanded exponentially since the investment. WPI has conducted parallel work on behalf of U.S., South American and European clients, both private and public, in the agri-food space.

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