World Perspectives
feed-grains farm-inputs

Tough Time to Make a Profit

There’s no question that big profits were made during the boom times and balance sheets looked wonderful. The problem is that money is now going out the door at an alarming rate, and those balance sheets can change quickly in this environment.It was easy to make money in the grain business from about 2007 through 2014. Markets were always going up, and U.S. crop production was good except for the poor corn yield in 2012. We’ve often written that when prices are high, margins are also high. That was the case across the U.S. and world grain trade. Every level of agriculture from the producer through the suppliers, handlers, exporters, processors, etc. had great years. Of course big profits also allowed management to become sloppy, and budgets...

Related Articles
feed-grains soy-oilseeds wheat

Market Commentary: Cattle are Hot Again, Grain Not so Much

Despite assurances from Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and the announcement this morning of nearly a half million tons of new soybean sales to China, the trade just doesn’t see the plausibility of a full 12 MMT of beans being bought near-term by Beijing. Particularly not when commitment...

feed-grains soy-oilseeds wheat

Summary of Futures

Mar 26 Corn closed at $4.4475/bushel, down $0.025 from yesterday's close.  Mar 26 Wheat closed at $5.3575/bushel, down $0.045 from yesterday's close.  Jan 26 Soybeans closed at $11.0525/bushel, down $0.1425 from yesterday's close.  Jan 26 Soymeal closed at $307.4/short ton, down...

feed-grains soy-oilseeds wheat

2026 Acreage Outlook: Expected Crop Shifts Diminishing

WPI’s second fall acreage forecasts for the 2026 U.S. crop year show producers executing a mild expansion of soybean acres that will not quite offset corn area losses while simultaneously reducing wheat area. Producers are also expected to keep minor crop acreage essentially unchanged, wh...

feed-grains soy-oilseeds wheat

Market Commentary: Cattle are Hot Again, Grain Not so Much

Despite assurances from Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and the announcement this morning of nearly a half million tons of new soybean sales to China, the trade just doesn’t see the plausibility of a full 12 MMT of beans being bought near-term by Beijing. Particularly not when commitment...

feed-grains soy-oilseeds wheat

Summary of Futures

Mar 26 Corn closed at $4.4475/bushel, down $0.025 from yesterday's close.  Mar 26 Wheat closed at $5.3575/bushel, down $0.045 from yesterday's close.  Jan 26 Soybeans closed at $11.0525/bushel, down $0.1425 from yesterday's close.  Jan 26 Soymeal closed at $307.4/short ton, down...

feed-grains soy-oilseeds wheat

2026 Acreage Outlook: Expected Crop Shifts Diminishing

WPI’s second fall acreage forecasts for the 2026 U.S. crop year show producers executing a mild expansion of soybean acres that will not quite offset corn area losses while simultaneously reducing wheat area. Producers are also expected to keep minor crop acreage essentially unchanged, wh...

USMCA Review Underway

U.S. trade officials have started the formal review process for the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), inviting public comment ahead of next year's renegotiation of the pact. Under the process, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) will eventually be required to provide reports...

Image
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.

Search World Perspectives

Sign In to World Perspectives

Don’t have an account yet? Sign Up