Brazil's CONAB Surprisingly Raises Soybean Forecast The Brazilian crop supply agency (CONAB) today raised its forecast for Brazil's 2012 soybean crop by 0.7 percent from its December forecast to 71.75 MMT. The forecast is 4.7 percent below production in 2011.The increase was a surprise, considering southern Brazil has been plagued by drought this year. It has been very dry in the states of Rio Parana and Grande do Sul, the second and third-largest producing states after Mato Grosso. I am seeing reports claiming that parts of the region are expecting yields to be down by as much as 40 percent. Some of the areas in the two states planted were earlier than normal and the current dryness is having a major impact on yields. It has been very d...
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
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.