The headline numbers from the February WASDE – the South American production estimates – were mostly in line with expectations, which is to say the massive Brazilian soybean crop was found to be even more so. USDA increased its assessment of the Brazilian crop to a new record, which is still below some private estimates. Also hitting a new record high was the U.S. corn export forecast, now pegged at 3.3 Bbu – an absolutely massive number that will keep exporters busy into the summer. While the headline WASDE numbers were eye-popping, the futures market’s reaction wasn’t. Corn and wheat drifted sideways/lower for the day with the weight of large global stocks pressuring market sentiment. The soy complex ra...
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.