Weather has returned as the driver for soybean futures prices since recent rains missed the very dry parts of Iowa and central Illinois. Meabwhile, funds continued to push wheat prices lower as they add to their short position. General Comments Soybeans were the leader in overnight futures trade, posting an 8 cent gain. This week’s Midwestern rains, including those of yesterday, missed the driest parts of Iowa and central Illinois. The moisture deficit does not bode well for soybeans in this important production area, and that market is starting to add back some weather premium. By contrast, corn and winter wheat prices were close to unchanged at the morning recess. During the day session, the soybean market did little more than hang onto...
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...
Tomorrow is the Juneteenth federal holiday, and the USDA, along with the rest of the federal government and the CME, will be closed, so the monthly Cattle on Feed report was released a day early. The total number of cattle on feed in feedlots with 1,000 head or more capacity on 1 June amounted...
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.