Could the policy response to the energy market disruptions caused by Hurricane Harvey include E15, at least temporarily?Hurricane Harvey will be the first major hurricane (those rated Category 3 or higher) to make landfall in the United States since the last four (Dennis, Katrina, Rita, and Wilma) all did so in 2005. Because Harvey moved slowly and stalled over Texas, there have been torrential rains that are well documented in the news. This hurricane is of course having a major effect on production in the swath of the storm as well as grain exports from the Gulf and thus commodity markets. The biggest impact, however, will be in the energy markets. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), the total refinery capacity...
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
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.