Agricultural Economy

New York Times writer Jacey Fortin reported yesterday that, “Low water levels in the Mississippi River have snarled barge traffic along one of the nation’s busiest waterways this week and have threatened the drinking water supply in Plaquemines Parish, La., just southeast of New Orleans.”

Bloomberg writers Michael Hirtzer, Elizabeth Elkin, and Joe Deaux reported yesterday that, “A logjam of more than 100 ships, tugboats and their convoys of barges in the shrinking Mississippi River is threatening to grind trade of grains, fertilizer, metals and petroleum to a halt.”

Sarah Bowman, writing on the front page of the Money section in today’s USA Today, reported that, “Outside Evansville, near the corner of Indiana where it meets with Kentucky and Illinois, Randy Kron farms about 2,200 acres of corn and soybeans.”

Bloomberg writer Jinglu Gu reported yesterday that, “China has curbed exports of corn starch in a signal that the world’s biggest corn importer is likely worried about local supplies.” 

Wall Street Journal writer Yuka Hayashi reported late last week that, “Sharp rises in food and fertilizer prices caused by the war in Ukraine are creating the worst global food crisis since at least 2008, putting the lives and livelihood of 345 million people in immediate danger, the International Monetary Fund said Friday.”

Elizabeth Findell, Dan Frosch and Cameron McWhirter reported on the front page of today’s Wall Street Journal that, “A day after Hurricane Ian ripped through the beach towns and coastal cities of southwest Florida, the widespread damage wrought by one of the strongest storms to hit the U.S. in decades was coming into view.”

DTN writer Russ Quinn reported yesterday that, “Retail fertilizer prices tracked by DTN for the third week of September 2022 continue to show varied prices. Five of the eight major fertilizers are lower in price compared to a month ago, while the remaining three are higher.”

Reuters writer Tom Polansek reported yesterday that, “The world is heading toward the tightest grain inventories in years despite the resumption of exports from Ukraine, as the shipments are too few and harvests from other major crop producers are smaller than initially expected, according to grain supply and crop forecast data.”

Bloomberg writer Aine Quinn reported today that, “Russia’s wheat harvest could reach a historic 100 million tons, according to consultant SovEcon, with the commodity piling up at home as the nation struggles to export large volumes.”

Patrick Thomas reported in today’s Wall Street Journal that, “A lackluster U.S. harvest this year is setting back efforts to relieve a global food supply that has been constrained by Russia’s war in Ukraine, agriculture-industry executives said.”

CoBank’s Knowledge Exchange division, in partnership with the University of Missouri, released a report yesterday titled, “The Importance of Off-Farm Income to the Agricultural Economy.”  

Wall Street Journal writer Ken Thomas reported today that, “The White House said Thursday it had reached a tentative agreement to avoid a potential railway strike that threatened to shut down a crucial vein of the U.S. economy.”

Jeanna Smialek reported on the front page of today’s New York Times that, “Price increases remained uncomfortably rapid in August as a broad array of goods and services became more expensive even as gas prices fell, evidence that the sustainable inflation slowdown the Federal Reserve and White House have been hoping for remains elusive.”

Bloomberg writers Kim Chipman, Michael Hirtzer, and Tarso Veloso Ribeiro reported yesterday that, “Soybean futures climbed 5.4%, the most in more than a year, after a closely watched crop report signaled shockingly tight supplies.” 

On Wednesday, the Federal Reserve Board released its August 2022 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.

The USDA’s Economic Research Service (ERS) indicated on Thursday that, “Net farm income, a broad measure of profits, is forecast to increase by $7.3 billion (5.2 percent) from 2021 to $147.7 billion in calendar year 2022.”

Bloomberg writer Agnieszka de Sousa reported today that, “Global food prices fell for a fifth month after demand for some products weakened and there was a seasonal uptick in supplies.” 

Earlier this week, the Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute (FAPRI) at the University of Missouri released its latest baseline update for U.S. agricultural markets.

In an update last week from the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City, “Ag Credit Conditions Remain Strong as Risks Grow,” Nathan Kauffman and Ty Kreitman stated that, “Agricultural credit conditions remained strong in the second quarter, but slower improvement was expected in the coming months.”

Kirk Maltais reported today at The Wall Street Journal Online that, “The worst drought in a decade is posing fresh challenges to farmers in the Corn Belt who already are struggling with surging costs, the dark side of a post-Covid commodities boom.”