Governments continue to be attracted to one-off tax schemes in an effort to fight the obesity epidemic and concurrently increase the budget coffer for politicians. Several such initiatives are pending in the U.S. as well as Europe. Uncertain TPP Push The trade policy and political machinery in Washington started cranking up this week for the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) in follow up to President Obama’s trip to Asia. Pivotal Republican Senator Orrin Hatch (Utah) softened his stance on addressing the goal of 12 years of intellectual property protection for biologics, support groups were unleashed to storm Capitol Hill, and surveys were highlighted showing Americans aren’t really anti-globalization. Still, the political hurdles are large...
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.