What You Need to Know Today:
Agricultural commodities were mostly lower on the day, with red-hot soyoil a notable exception. Export sales were a bit underwhelming, particularly for corn with export sales down 52 percent week-over-week. The weakness in ag markets tracked crude oil weakness with traders pricing in a more concrete path to an Iran war resolution.
President Trump is making a final determination about the terms needed for him to agree on a deal to end the war with Iran. Among the terms Trump wants Iran to abide by is that the country will never have a nuclear weapon and to immediately open the Strait of Hormuz to unrestricted shipping traffic. Trump also said that the U.S. naval blockade in the Strait would be lifted as part...
With the war in Iran affecting fuel and fertilizer prices, higher tariffs, weak commodity prices, ag labor constraints, and other factors, farm bankruptcies are now at a 6-year high, a signal of growing stress. During the month of April, 62 Chapter 12 bankruptcies were filed, which is a 1...
Food Inflation The Open Markets Institute, which is notably funded by several “anonymous” donors and liberal foundations, obtained a guest editorial in the New York Times in which they blame agribusiness concentration for higher grocery prices. This is their schtick and it is politi...
Since the closure of the Strait of Hormuz in February 2026, energy markets have experienced significant disruptions. Crude oil, diesel fuel, and other petroleum products rose sharply as traders responded to uncertainty in one of the world's most important shipping corridors. The question for fo...
