Key Market Developments While tariffs were not addressed directly in the State of the Union, trade policy remains steady. Reports during today’s session confirmed that U.S. tariffs on China will remain in the 35 percent–50 percent range, signaling limited escalation ahead of upcoming talks between President Trump and President Xi. The stance reduces immediate downside risk tied to further disruption, but it does not create new demand — and demand ultimately follows price. Currency markets were active in the session. The U.S. dollar traded lower, offering incremental support to export competitiveness. At the same time, the Brazilian real reached another contract high versus the dollar. In theory, that narrows Brazil’s...
What You Need to Know Today: Corn, wheat, and the soy complex all formed new contract or at least rally highs to close what has become one of the most uniformly bullish weeks in CBOT history. Escalations in the fighting between Russia and Ukraine and attacks on civilian merchant vessels show n...
The Federal Reserve Board holds an annual meeting in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, each year about this time, and this year’s meeting is now. It’s always a “must-watch” event, but this year, amidst persistent inflation and with a new Fed chairman, Kevin Warsh, it drew additiona...
You cannot escape the vortex of opinions about water scarcity in the Western United States, especially in the drought-stricken Colorado River Basin. Agriculture is the villain in many of these editorials. Agriculture uses too much water, so it should use less, is the refrain. We all wish it was...
From WPI Consulting
Weighing in on strategic realignment
WPI’s team was retained by the governing board of a U.S. industry organization to review a decision, reached by vote, to invest significant assets into the development and management of an export trading company. WPI’s team conducted a formal review of this decision and concluded that the current level of market saturation would limit the benefits of the investment. Based on WPI’s analysis and recommended actions, the board subsequently reversed its decision and undertook a strategic planning effort to identify more impactful investments. On behalf of numerous clients, WPI has not only assisted in identifying strategic paths but also advised their implementation.