Grain and soy traders are in a waiting game for news on Chinese trade and NAFTA as well as the 10 May release of USDA’s WASDE. The May report may not be the most important of the year, but it will certainly be one of the most interesting with USDA’s plunge into projections for U.S. and world crop production along with supply/demand balances for 2018/19. At best, the 2018/19 numbers are educated guesswork, and they are complicated by the trade tensions with China and the unknown status of NAFTA. Rather than guessing what might happen in these areas, USDA may well decide to ignore them and assume “normal” trade. In any case, its projections will be a starting point for 2018/19’s ongoing and ever-changing analyses...
What You Need to Know Today: After a period of limited activity, USDA reported a sizeable 613 KMT in soybean export sales, including 330 KMT to China and 283 KMT to unknown destinations, potentially also China. The purchases represent a meaningful pickup in demand and bring China closer to ful...
Key Takeaways: Consumer spending is a key driver of the U.S. economy, and the latest retail sales data indicate that spending remains robust despite inflation. In September, total retail and food service sales rose more than 6 percent year-over-year, with food service spending up 7 percent and...
The Trump import plan for 300,000 MT of beef supplies used for ground beef, i.e., lean trim, from September through November has, according to Secretary Brooke Rollins, brought some relief to beef prices. The Executive Order states that the Secretary of Agriculture will analyze and review the m...
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Illuminating the value of technical research
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