Russian Grain Markets: 2-6 May 2022 Russian grain traders have continued to decrease their bids in the Black Sea and Azov Sea ports which are now 100 percent controlled by Russia. All Ukrainian ports are blocked and vessels loaded earlier cannot move any further. However, the main reason behind the bearish move is stronger Russian local currency and increased export duty. On the other hand, farmers need cash for planting, and they need to dump some of last year’s stocks as well. Exporters are playing a waiting game due to the quota (which some have already used up) and precontracted stocks. Russian inflation for 2022 is estimated at around 20 percent despite reassurances by the Central Bank governor Elvira Nabiullina that inflation...
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.