India Subcontinent Regional Analysis
Record Sugar Production Expected as Prices Tumble and Arrears Mount India’s sugar production for 2017/18 (October-September) is now expected to total 30.3 MMT, up from the previous estimate of 29.5 MMT. The production cycle is coming to an end with output reaching a high of 28.18 M...
Ag Review - March 2018
WPI's monthly publication features analyses of the U.S. grain industry, U.S. soybean marketing strategies, the U.S. biofuels industry, the global outlook for farm inputs, and policy trends. It also provides a review of agribusiness stock prices along with expectations for future performance...
Market Commentary
To no one’s surprise, the U.S. Federal Reserve’s Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) raised its interest rate a quarter-percent to a still historically low 1.75 percent. This increase, the sixth since December 2015, was approved unanimously by the voting members of the committee. T...
Indian Subcontinent Regional Analysis
Record Sugar Production Expected Based on the projected increase in sugarcane production (see Ag Perspectives, 2 March), a higher crush as well as good recovery in Maharashtra, Karnataka and Uttar Pradesh, the sugar industry expects 2017/18 sugar production to reach 29.2 MMT, a record. That is...
Commodities are in Vogue Again
In the 1840s, the ad hoc trading of physical lots of wheat, corn, rye, oats and hay on a street corner in Chicago eventually became transaction-based on standardized terms. That development allowed traders to buy and sell physical quantities of grain for delivery at specified times in the futur...
Ag Review - February 2018
WPI's monthly publication features analyses of farm inputs and equipment, the U.S. grain industry, the global soybean outlook, U.S. meat and livestock industry, and policy trends. It also provides a review of agribusiness stock prices along with expectations for future performance...
Rejet de la Modernité; Fake Food News; Ethanol “Fix"
Rejet de la Modernité French President Emmanuel Macron is preparing his nation’s farmers for change, but it isn’t clear that his plan is the right solution. He is correctly warning this constituency that future CAP spending may be reduced due to Brexit, but his goal of more d...
Profile of American Farms
Each year USDA/NASS conducts a Farms and Land in Farms survey regarding economic demographics. The results are usually released in time for USDA’s annual Outlook Forum every February. (ERS released the results of its 2017 survey on 16 February.) Farms are defined as “any place from...
Tax Glitch Sill Not Fixed
One of the late changes to the recently passed U.S. tax reform bill created some significant, unintended consequences that gave farmers a huge tax break and cooperatives an incredible advantage over privately-owned grain companies. As it stands today, the situation allows farmers to deduct 20 p...
Mercosur Regional Analysis
Macroeconomics On 9 February, a portion of the grain truck drivers’ union called for a strike across Argentina that is also preventing those who are not members from working as well. The strike is generating losses of $100 million/day across the entire value chain. The combination of not...
Indian Subcontinent Regional Analysis
High Duty Reduces Edible Oil Imports Edible oil imports dropped in December 2017 following an increase in the duty the previous month, falling approximately 9.88 percent to 1.058 MMT versus 1.174 MMT in December 2016. They totaled 2.283 MMT for the two months of November and December 2017, down...
An Important Month for U.S. Farmers
February is important for U.S. farmers as it is the month that the initial prices for the federal crop revenue insurance programs are calculated. These also serve as the minimum prices regardless of what the markets do going forward and form the basis for the per acre revenue guarantees for the...
India Subcontinent Regional Analysis
Record Sugar Production Expected as Prices Tumble and Arrears Mount India’s sugar production for 2017/18 (October-September) is now expected to total 30.3 MMT, up from the previous estimate of 29.5 MMT. The production cycle is coming to an end with output reaching a high of 28.18 M...
Ag Review - March 2018
WPI's monthly publication features analyses of the U.S. grain industry, U.S. soybean marketing strategies, the U.S. biofuels industry, the global outlook for farm inputs, and policy trends. It also provides a review of agribusiness stock prices along with expectations for future performance...
Market Commentary
To no one’s surprise, the U.S. Federal Reserve’s Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) raised its interest rate a quarter-percent to a still historically low 1.75 percent. This increase, the sixth since December 2015, was approved unanimously by the voting members of the committee. T...
Indian Subcontinent Regional Analysis
Record Sugar Production Expected Based on the projected increase in sugarcane production (see Ag Perspectives, 2 March), a higher crush as well as good recovery in Maharashtra, Karnataka and Uttar Pradesh, the sugar industry expects 2017/18 sugar production to reach 29.2 MMT, a record. That is...
Commodities are in Vogue Again
In the 1840s, the ad hoc trading of physical lots of wheat, corn, rye, oats and hay on a street corner in Chicago eventually became transaction-based on standardized terms. That development allowed traders to buy and sell physical quantities of grain for delivery at specified times in the futur...
Ag Review - February 2018
WPI's monthly publication features analyses of farm inputs and equipment, the U.S. grain industry, the global soybean outlook, U.S. meat and livestock industry, and policy trends. It also provides a review of agribusiness stock prices along with expectations for future performance...
Rejet de la Modernité; Fake Food News; Ethanol “Fix"
Rejet de la Modernité French President Emmanuel Macron is preparing his nation’s farmers for change, but it isn’t clear that his plan is the right solution. He is correctly warning this constituency that future CAP spending may be reduced due to Brexit, but his goal of more d...
Profile of American Farms
Each year USDA/NASS conducts a Farms and Land in Farms survey regarding economic demographics. The results are usually released in time for USDA’s annual Outlook Forum every February. (ERS released the results of its 2017 survey on 16 February.) Farms are defined as “any place from...
Tax Glitch Sill Not Fixed
One of the late changes to the recently passed U.S. tax reform bill created some significant, unintended consequences that gave farmers a huge tax break and cooperatives an incredible advantage over privately-owned grain companies. As it stands today, the situation allows farmers to deduct 20 p...
Mercosur Regional Analysis
Macroeconomics On 9 February, a portion of the grain truck drivers’ union called for a strike across Argentina that is also preventing those who are not members from working as well. The strike is generating losses of $100 million/day across the entire value chain. The combination of not...
Indian Subcontinent Regional Analysis
High Duty Reduces Edible Oil Imports Edible oil imports dropped in December 2017 following an increase in the duty the previous month, falling approximately 9.88 percent to 1.058 MMT versus 1.174 MMT in December 2016. They totaled 2.283 MMT for the two months of November and December 2017, down...
An Important Month for U.S. Farmers
February is important for U.S. farmers as it is the month that the initial prices for the federal crop revenue insurance programs are calculated. These also serve as the minimum prices regardless of what the markets do going forward and form the basis for the per acre revenue guarantees for the...