GOOD MORNING, The markets seem to have run out of price direction except for the continuation of small fund liquidation into end-user pricing interest. Pricing orders help to stabilize prices as technicals turn weaker, but the session culminated with a sell-off towards key support levels which remains defensive in tone, particularly for corn. One of the major features is that of higher oilshare, with meal trading lower this morning on the back of a story talking about a possible resurgence of ASF in parts of China. Trade sources report that some farms in China's central province of Sichuan are still fighting ASF and have been since March, with animals culled as regions fight to contain the outbreak. The provi...
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.