Regional Updates MEDITERRANEAN/MIDDLE EAST/NORTH AFRICA Bangladesh poultry industry leaders have asked the government to help their suffering industry by reducing the tax on animal feed manufacturers from 15 percent to 5 percent and they want to exempt the taxes on feed raw materials for “at least 10 years”. Retail poultry prices are at the lowest levels in 12 years. Much of the industry problems are being blamed on a COVID-19 drop in poultry consumption complicated by increases in raw material costs. COVID-19 is said to have cost the poultry industry $825 million. India has asked Pakistan for permission to ship 50,000 MT of wheat by truck across Pakistan to Afghanistan. The wheat is as a donation to help with food shor...
What You Need to Know Today: The June jobs report showed nonfarm payrolls increased by 57k jobs, less than the 115k jobs expected by economists surveyed by Dow Jones. The labor force participation rate dropped by 0.3 percent to 61.5 percent, the lowest since March 2021, and the lowest in 50 ye...
As Cuba's economic crisis has deepened, discussions about the country's eventual economic and political transition have reemerged. One question that inevitably follows is what opportunities might emerge for U.S. agricultural exports. So, here’s a brief review of those opportunities, but n...
Key Takeaways Traffic through the Strait of Hormuz is increasing steadily, despite a precarious political situation. The increased flow of vessels through the SOH is pressuring tanker rates, though total volumes remain well below pre-war levels. The big issue in the Strait of Hormu...
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.