Agricultural Economy

In its October Market Monitor report, the Agricultural Market Information System (AMIS) indicated that, “Fertilizer prices were mostly up in September along with prices for main fertilizer inputs.”

In its weekly Grain Transportation report on Thursday, the USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service indicated that, “The Mississippi River System (MRS) comprises the Nation’s primary waterways for moving grain from Midwest production areas to the U.S. Gulf region for export.  Close to 60 percent of U.S. grain exports (wheat, soybeans, and corn) travel this route by barge.”

DTN writer Russ Quinn reported yesterday that, “Retail fertilizer prices tracked by DTN for the fourth week of September 2023 are showing a more pronounced split as some prices rise and others fall.”

Reuters writer Julie Ingwersen reported yesterday that, “The U.S. corn and soy harvests were 23% complete by Sunday, government data showed on Monday, slightly behind analysts’ expectations that both crops would be 25% harvested.”

Late last week, DTN reported that, “United States inventory of all hogs and pigs on Sept. 1, 2023, was 74.3 million head. This was up slightly from Sept. 1, 2022, and up 2% from June 1, 2023, USDA NASS reported on Thursday.”

Dow Jones writer Kirk Maltais reported on Friday that, “Wheat for December delivery fell 6.6% to $5.40 3/4 a bushel, on the Chicago Board of Trade on Friday, with heavy selling taking place after the USDA reported both higher production and higher stockpiles than expected by analysts.”

Bloomberg writer Michael Hirtzer reported on Friday that, “America’s crop exports are once again at risk due to a diminished Mississippi River.”

Reuters writer Pavel Polityuk reported today that, “Russia carried out a big wave of air strikes on three Ukrainian regions early on Thursday in which Ukrainian officials said some attack drones had hit their targets but did not say what was damaged.”

Bloomberg writers Kim Chipman and Tarso Veloso Ribeiro reported yesterday that, “For US corn farmers, the rise of green jet fuel is their best hope of staving off an existential threat.”

Donnelle Eller reported on the front page of Sunday’s Des Moines Register that, “Drought, now [Iowa’s] longest in two decades, encompasses most of Iowa, a new U.S. Drought Monitor shows. Nearly three-fourths of the state is gripped in severe to exceptional drought, including large swaths of eastern Iowa.”

Associated Press writer Scott McFetridge reported on the front page of Saturday’s Des Moines Register that, “A long stretch of hot, dry weather has left the Mississippi River so low that barge companies are reducing their loads just as Midwest farmers are preparing to harvest crops and send tons of corn and soybeans downriver to the Gulf of Mexico.”

Chris Kenning reported on the front page of today’s USA Today that, “In the wheelhouse high atop the rumbling, 240-foot boat, James Garner perched in a chair surrounded by levers, dials and screens. Below him, the Dredge Potter inched up a remote stretch of khaki-colored water between Missouri and Illinois.”

Reuters writer Mark Weinraub reported yesterday that, “The U.S. government cut its forecast for the soybean crop on Tuesday after hot and dry conditions during key growth stages but raised the corn harvest view due to expectations for large acreage harvested despite adverse weather this summer.”

DTN Managing Editor Anthony Greder reported yesterday that, “The 2023 U.S. corn harvest is slightly outpacing the five-year average so far as the crop continues to reach maturity ahead of normal, USDA NASS stated in its weekly Crop Progress report on Monday. Soybeans, too, continue to reach maturity ahead of the five-year average.”

The Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute (FAPRI) at the University of Missouri released its latest baseline update for U.S. farm income and government costs on Monday.

Dow Jones writer Kirk Maltais reported on Friday that, “The effect of scorching heat on maturing U.S. crops is driving the price debate in grain markets, with trading volume of grain futures muted as observers are split over the extent of crop damage.”

Bloomberg writer Agnieszka de Sousa reported today that, “Global food prices resumed declines to the lowest in more than two years amid ample supplies of cooking oils and dairy, even as worries persist over flows of key staples from some regions.”

On Wednesday, the Federal Reserve Board released its August 2023 Beige Book update, a summary of commentary on current economic conditions by Federal Reserve District. The report included several observations pertaining to the U.S. agricultural economy.

Reuters News reported today that, “Chicago soybean futures rose on Wednesday, recouping the last session’s losses, after a weekly U.S. report showed that crop conditions had deteriorated more than expected due to high temperatures.”

The Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute (FAPRI) at the University of Missouri released its latest baseline update for U.S. agricultural markets on Tuesday.