Asia Perspectives President Donald Trump said yesterday that North Korea will remain under sanctions but that he believes an agreement with Pyongyang will eventually be reached. Robert Manning at the Atlantic Council is not so sure. Manning notably argues that Kim Jong-un is not attracted by the economic benefits being offered by Trump in exchange for ending his nuclear armaments. This is because market orientation is seen as a potential threat to the Kim dynasty, while the regime stays together based on the perception of external threats. The Trump administration expressed cautious optimism all week that a trade deal with China is getting close. Harvard University’s Dani Rodnik notably argues that the two countries need to find the...
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, the meeting is becoming tied directly to Iran, energy security, and the growing global economic fallout from disruptions through the Strai...
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.