OPEC members, especially Saudi Arabia and Iraq, actually increased production in advance of the 1 January 2017 implementation of their agreement to reduce volumes. In turn, those actions affect the U.S. crude supply.During the last quarter of 2016, countries in the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) internally negotiated an approximate 4.5 percent reduction in crude oil production for each member (see Ag Perspectives 12 December). According to an OPEC press statement at the time, “The global oil market has witnessed a serious challenge of imbalance and volatility pressured mainly from the supply side.” The agreement was finalized on 30 November 2016 and implemented on 1 January 2017 with production scheduled to be cu...
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.