The CBOT ended the week mixed on lackluster volume with encouraging near-term demand developments being outweighed by the May WASDE’s large supply forecasts. Soyoil led the soy complex higher but the NOPA report exerted bearish pressure on soymeal. Wheat futures turned lower under continued fund selling while corn found modest support on news that some ethanol plants will reopen in the coming week. Concerns about U.S.-China trade relations are growing as rhetoric between Washington and Beijing heats up. This morning, the Trump Administration said it would block shipments of semiconductors from Chinese company Huawei, which will likely not sit well with Chinese leaders and could undermine China’s commitment to the Phase One deal...
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.