What You Need to Know Today: The U.S. conducted “self-defense strikes” in Iran and said the two sides are “close” to negotiating a...
Articles
China Partially Lifts HPAI Restrictions
As we reported on 19 May, China has also committed to the resumption of U.S. poultry imports from states without confirmed HPAI detections. USDA’s An...
Brazil’s Emerging Corn Ethanol Industry Driven by Market Forces and Biofuel Policy
Key Takeaways: Brazil has been the second-largest producer of fuel ethanol globally, but almost all of it was derived from sugarcane until recently. Corn...
Summary of Futures
Jul 26 Corn closed at $4.575/bushel, down $0.0575 from yesterday's close. Jul 26 Wheat closed at $6.355/bushel, down $0.1075 from yesterday's close.&...
CFTC COT Report Analysis
Friday’s CFTC report showed funds reducing net long positions across most of the major ag futures contracts for the second straight week. Funds reduc...
China Market Analysis
Grain China’s General Administration of Customs says that grain imports were up 34.3 percent in April and an overall 18.1 percent for the January to...
Middle East, Mediterranean, and Africa Regional Analysis
Eid Al-Adha will be celebrated in the Muslim world from 27 to 30 May 2026. The actual dates vary by country. Governments, banks and businesses will all be...
Market Commentary: Small Gains as Corn/Soybeans Correct; Commodity Supercycle
What You Need to Know Today: The corn and soybean markets closed slightly higher in low-volume trade. The wheat market was mixed, with HRW continuing its...
U.S. Cattle on Feed on May 1, 2026
• U.S. Cattle on Feed Up in feedlots with capacity of 1,000 or more head totaled 11.6 million on May 1, 2026 - 2 percent above May 1, 2025. • Pla...
Memorial Day Holiday
Monday, 25 May is a U.S. holiday, and both the markets and our office will be closed. Please note that the next issue of Ag Perspectives will be published...
Cattle on Feed Report: Neutral with Bearish Undertones
USDA’s monthly cattle on feed report was released today. The total number of cattle on feed in feedlots with 1,000 head or more capacity amounted to...
Fake Meat? On the End of the Aisle
Let’s return briefly to the fake meat hype cycle, now sitting somewhere in a dusty corner of your mind, not entirely forgotten. What happened to all...
Summary of Futures
Jul 26 Corn closed at $4.6325/bushel, up $0.01 from yesterday's close. Jul 26 Wheat closed at $6.4625/bushel, down $0.0125 from yesterday's close.&nb...
Cold Storage Report Summary and Analysis
April 2026 total red meat and poultry stocks were up sharply from March but 1.6 percent below April 2025 levels due to continued declines in poultry and po...
Transportation Perspectives - 21 May
Dry bulk markets were volatile but ultimately steady this week with notable differences in rate developments across vessel classes. The Capesize sect...
New Trade Agreements; Hold the Beef; Where’s the Beef
New Trade Agreements U.S. and Indian officials say that bilateral trade negotiations are progressing on a comprehensive deal to expand earlier completed ch...
Market Commentary: A Market Trading War — Until It Wasn’t
Key Market Insights Macro markets delivered a full whipsaw today. Early in the session, crude oil had rallied back above $100/barrel as traders priced rene...
Summary of Futures
Jul 26 Corn closed at $4.6225/bushel, down $0.035 from yesterday's close. Jul 26 Wheat closed at $6.475/bushel, down $0.13 from yesterday's close.&nb...
Poultry Profitability Helping to Offset Challenging Beef Environment for Major Protein Producers
Key Takeaways: Major meatpackers are seeing massive losses in their beef divisions, with cattle prices at record levels amid low inventories. Drought cont...
Livestock Roundup: Cattle on Feed Preview
USDA’s monthly cattle on feed report for 1 May will be released tomorrow. Analysts’ pre-report consensus estimates are for the total inventory...
Market Commentary: Grains Drift Lower on Improved Weather, Pre-Holiday Selling
What You Need to Know Today: Chinese officials indicated that China and the U.S. have agreed to cut 10 percent tariffs on imports. Chinese officials confi...
Free Trade to State Direction; Transatlantic Concessions
Free Trade to State Direction Conceptually, American farmers are huge winners under a free trade policy promising fair and equitable terms. As critic...
Summary of Futures
Jul 26 Corn closed at $4.6575/bushel, down $0.095 from yesterday's close. Jul 26 Wheat closed at $6.605/bushel, down $0.0675 from yesterday's close.&...
Black Sea Regional Analysis
Russian Grain Markets: 11 - 15 May 2026 The Russian grains market showed a broadly bullish tone across the European part of the country during the week, wh...
Soyoil Prices Continue to Be Bullish Amid High Energy Prices and Favorable Biofuel Policy
Key Takeaways: Soyoil futures have been trading at the highest levels since 2022. Higher crude oil prices have allowed biofuels to be more cost-competitiv...
Zimmerman Joins WPI Team as Communications Manager
World Perspectives, Inc. is pleased to announce a new member to our team. Cortney Zimmerman joined WPI in January as the Communications Manager. In this ro...
Market Commentary: Markets Pause to Assess China Deal Amid Broadly Bullish Backdrop
What You Need to Know Today: Excitement over China’s agreement to purchase $17 billion of U.S. ag commodities subsided, as traders are cautious amid...
CFTC COT Report Analysis
Friday’s CFTC report showed funds reducing net long positions across most of the major ag futures contracts, reversing a three-week buying trend. Fun...
China Market Analysis
There has been more analysis of the Trump-Xi meeting last week than decades worth of papers written on the fall of Rome and the assassination of JFK. Optim...
More on China Trade
As WPI reported, Presidents Trump and Xi held a bilateral summit last week (World Perspectives), the first since 2017, with some uncertainty over the outco...
Summary of Futures
Jul 26 Corn closed at $4.7525/bushel, down $0.0175 from yesterday's close. Jul 26 Wheat closed at $6.6725/bushel, up $0.0275 from yesterday's close.&...
Middle East, Mediterranean, and Africa Regional Analysis
Mediterranean/Middle East/North Africa/Africa – MEA Region Iran is said to import about 20 million MT of grains and oilseeds annually through Persian...
Texas Joins Beef Antitrust Effort
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton on Friday launched an investigation into the beef industry over potential anticompetitive conduct among the nation’...
Summary of Futures
Jul 26 Corn closed at $4.77/bushel, up $0.2125 from yesterday's close. Jul 26 Wheat closed at $6.645/bushel, up $0.2875 from yesterday's close. ...
Market Commentary: Assumptions, Uncertainty, Volatility
What You Need to Know Today: Markets opened double digits higher Sunday evening following the release of Chinese and American official summaries of bilater...
Mercosur Regional Analysis
Corn Argentina’s corn harvest remains virtually stalled as producers continue prioritizing the soybean harvest, which has advanced rapidly in recent...
Market Commentary: Funds Come Off Their High Horse
With no bullish surprise out of Beijing this week and good weather taking over many global crop areas, funds spent the past couple of days selling off the...
Trump-Xi Bilateral Meeting Over
The long-awaited meeting between President Trump and President Xi of China has concluded, and details are elusive, though Trump stated today that he and Xi...
Summary of Futures
Jul 26 Corn closed at $4.5575/bushel, down $0.1175 from yesterday's close. Jul 26 Wheat closed at $6.3575/bushel, down $0.2225 from yesterday's close...
Wheat Prospects in China and India: Much Ado About Nothing?
Key Takeaways Weather conditions in China and India are deteriorating and threatening the wheat crops. Drought conditions in China are not without p...
Farm Labor: Fix What is Broken?
We at WPI hear frequently that U.S. agriculture is broken and needs fixing. This argument is often heard in MAHA-related discussions and focuses on highly...
Market Commentary: Lack of China Specifics Sink Market
There was heavy volume exiting soybeans, which dragged down the broader market today. The lack of a specific Chinese buying commitment for soybeans undermi...
Administration to Suspend TRQ Waiver on Beef
On Tuesday, 12 May, WPI reported on an Executive Order being prepared by the Trump Administration to suspend tariff rate quotas (TRQs) on beef from all exp...
Transportation Perspectives - May 14
WPI has officially launched Transportation Perspectives as a standalone weekly report separate from our Ag Perspectives articles and analysis. Current Ag P...
Summary of Futures
Jul 26 Corn closed at $4.675/bushel, down $0.1325 from yesterday's close. Jul 26 Wheat closed at $6.58/bushel, down $0.175 from yesterday's close.&nb...
WASDE Soybeans - May 2026
USDA’s initial outlook for 2026/27 U.S. soybeans is that increased production will be offset by strong demand for soybean oil as a biofuel. The soybe...
WASDE Corn - May 2026
USDA’s initial outlook for 2026/27 corn is that the U.S. remains the largest global exporter. The season-average farm price is projected to increase...
WASDE Wheat - May 2026
USDA’s initial outlook for 2026/27 U.S. wheat is for a significant reduction in Hard Red Winter wheat: The expectation is for an 18 percent decline i...
Market Commentary: War, Weather, and Waiting
Key Market Insights The broad market is locked in on this week’s Trump-Xi meeting in Beijing, but this is no longer just a trade summit. Increasingly...
Policy Roundup
A federal appeals court paused a USITC ruling against President Trump’s use of Section 122 to impose 10-percent global tariffs. A bipartisan gr...
Black Sea Regional Analysis
Russian Grain Markets: 4 - 8 May 2026 During the week under review, the Russian grain market began showing more bullish sentiment despite the traditionally...
Summary of Futures
Jul 26 Corn closed at $4.8075/bushel, up $0.0075 from yesterday's close. Jul 26 Wheat closed at $6.755/bushel, down $0.035 from yesterday's close.&nb...
Market Commentary: USDA Slashes Wheat Outlook, Soy Balance Sheet Heavily Yield-Dependent
What You Need to Know Today: Iran says its definition of the Strait of Hormuz is now a “vast operation area” that stretches from Jask to Siri...
Xi-Trump Summit Bottom Line
If the media headlines and Trump critics are to be believed, President Trump is headed to Beijing this Thursday in a weakened position. China is in control...
AP Quant: WASDE Wheat
WPI offers the following PDF of key supply and demand tables and charts relating to the USDA’s latest WASDE report. This is not an all-inclusive comp...
AP Quant: WASDE Soybeans
WPI offers the following PDF of key supply and demand tables and charts relating to the USDA’s latest WASDE report. This is not an all-inclusive comp...
AP Quant: WASDE Corn
WPI offers the following PDF of key supply and demand tables and charts relating to the USDA’s latest WASDE report. This is not an all-inclusive comp...
Middle East, Mediterranean, and Africa Regional Analysis
Regional News Egypt reiterated plans to achieve self-sufficiency in wheat supplies for the country’s subsidized bread program by 2028, although the t...
Summary of Futures
Jul 26 Corn closed at $4.8/bushel, up $0.0475 from yesterday's close. Jul 26 Wheat closed at $6.79/bushel, up $0.45 from yesterday's close. Jul...
U.S. to Temporarily Suspend TRQs on Over-Quota Tariffs on Beef
The Trump Administration is planning a suspension of tariff rate quotas (TRQs) on beef from all exporters for 200 days as a means to address high beef pric...