Missing Trade Policy Component WTO Director General Roberto Azevēdo is suggesting a plurilateral approach for at least some of the issues failing to reach consensus ahead of the ministerial meeting less than two months away. A plurilateral involves agreement by a subset of the full WTO membership. Meanwhile, the EU and U.S. may consider sectoral agreements given the uncertainty of accomplishing a comprehensive Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) agreement. Sectorals focus on single areas of trade such as regulatory harmonization. However, a missing component in the WTO is an offensive call for improved market access, which would obviate demands for food security stockpiling since imports would be more readily available. I...
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
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.