An anomaly since COVID disrupted supply chains is that the price of rice has been more stable than other food staples such as corn and wheat.
One argument for this is that a far smaller share of total rice production is traded, making it less subject to global supply/demand volatility.
This runs counter to arguments that a diversified supply chain means that a production problem in one area is remedied by surplus supplies arriving from elsewhere. Historically, the prices for these three food staples have correlated. However, rice has itself encountered periods in which its price has proved an outlier. In 2008, it reached high levels relative to wheat due to a supply shortage. In 2002 and 2013, rice farmers were exasperated...
What You Need to Know Today: U.S. and Chinese officials are expected to discuss agriculture and non-tariff trade barriers ahead of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s visit to Washington later this month, potentially opening the door to additional U.S. agricultural purchases or improved marke...
The U.S. will observe Labor Day on Monday, 7 September. U.S. markets and the WPI office will be closed that day. The next edition of Ag Perspectives will be published Tuesday, 8 September...
Key Takeaways: Drought and changes to the multi-year trend in cow slaughter and retention have the potential to dramatically alter beef trim supplies and pricing, and WPI specifically models three different drought scenarios for fall 2026. Based on our models, WPI expects 90 percent lean...
