Big changes are underway at the CFTC. Its chairman, Gary Gensler, has made it known for quite some time that he intends to leave his post on 3 January 2014 when his term expires. The Obama administration has been slow to nominate his successor. However, after floating a number of names, President Obama formally nominated Timothy Massad. Mr. Gensler has promised to stay beyond 3 January until his replacement is confirmed by the Senate.Mr. Massad has been Assistant Secretary for Financial Stability at the Treasury Dept. since 2010. As such, he was in charge of winding down the controversial Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) that was established by the Bush administration in 2008 at the onset of the financial crisis. TARP's purpose was to a...
What You Need to Know Today: Chinese purchases of U.S. soybeans continued to accelerate, with USDA reporting another 558 KMT sold to China and 236 KMT to unknown destinations. Combined with sales announced Wednesday and Thursday, the latest purchases bring the three-day total to approximately...
Key Takeaways: With the fall calf run now upon us, producers are finally getting a glimpse of what their realized profits will be for 2026. Some producers may have already obtained a strong estimate of 2026 revenues, especially if calves were forward sold in, for example, the mid-summer...
As fall begins, wild migratory birds are starting their seasonal migration. That has the industry and government officials worried about the potential spread, again, of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI). Some members of Congress have called for the United States to be prepared for a pote...
Illuminating the value of technical research
On behalf of a commodity producer organization, WPI evaluated the outputs from a project that featured a $5 million investment into technical research over multiple years. WPI’s team captured the results of this extensive effort and synthesized them for presentation to the organization’s governing board; among the findings uncovered and presented for the first time was the development of genomic traits proven, via rigorous testing, to provide crop yield advantages of 50 percent or more to U.S. farmers in times of drought. Capturing measurable results from long-term efforts can be challenging. Educating clients on the dynamics of success measurement when quantifiable results are not readily available requires deep client-consultant collaboration and an ability to consider both near- and long-term client aspirations with market/policy dynamics – attributes that WPI brings to every consulting engagement.