Yesterday’s crop progress report was gasoline on the fire for futures markets. The corn planting figure was lower than expected with key growing states (Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio) well behind their typical paces. More concerningly, soybean planting is also behind schedule, perhaps indicating that fewer corn acres will be switched to that crop than previously thought. The only certainty out of this week’s report is that prevented planting acres will be the largest in a decade or more. The market reacted to the crop progress report with an unusually active overnight session that saw corn, wheat, and soybeans all trade sharply higher. The knee-jerk reaction was to add more weather premia to prices, which is exactly what traders...
What You Need to Know Today: Funds remain in control of the market, which means broadly bearish trade for the ag sector. Monday’s massive corn export sale to Mexico helped trigger some short covering and a bit of other end-user buying in corn, which could help stabilize the market. Wheat...
With less than 24 hours until Election Day, control of the Senate remains a wild card. Republicans and Democrats alike say they are poised to win control of the chamber in the new Congress that starts in January 2027. The House of Representatives is more of a lost cause for continued Republican...
Key Takeaways: U.S. hog and pork prices have declined sharply, with December lean hog futures ending October at $58.875/cwt and the pork cutout reaching its lowest level since January 2021. Seasonal increases in hog slaughter and pork production have contributed to price weakness, although the...
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.