At the start of the wheat season, it was thought in India that international prices could rise if large volumes of wheat were to be imported. That has not occurred, however, and GOI has taken a step to facilitate those imports while making assurances regarding the open market there. Slashed Wheat Duty to Boost Imports After much discussion and pressure from the market, the government of India (GOI) reduced the wheat import duty last week from 25 percent to 10 percent, effective immediately until February 2017. Trade considers that to be a rollback as the duty was increased to 25 percent in June 2016. Some view it an acknowledgement of the shortfall in wheat production and resulting need for imports to address the supply/demand gap and kee...
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...
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released the Consumer Price Index (CPI) on Wednesday. In July, the CPI rose 0.1 percent, seasonally adjusted, and rose 3.4 percent over the last 12 months, not seasonally adjusted. The index for all items less food and energy, or the “core” infla...
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.