Bloomberg writers Tarso Veloso Ribeiro and Michael Hirtzer reported late last week that, “Global demand for corn will come back to the US in the coming months, according to Archer-Daniels-Midland Co., one of the world’s biggest crop traders.”
Farm Policy News
FT: “World’s Food Supplies Still Under Threat,” “Multiple Risks Remain,” Notes Bloomberg News
Emiko Terazono reported on Saturday at The Financial Times Online that, “Fertiliser and crop prices have fallen sharply since their peaks after last year’s Russian attack on Ukraine.”
FAS Report Highlights China’s Corn Imports From Brazil; While Rice Prices Climb
The USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) indicated in a report this week, “China: Grain and Feed Update,” that, “Post forecasts MY2022/23 corn imports at 18 MMT, the same as USDA’s official estimate.”
DTN: Retail Fertilizer Price Trends, “Considerably Lower,” While Mexico Hopes to Reduce Corn Imports
DTN writer Russ Quinn reported yesterday that, “Most average retail fertilizer prices were lower the third week of January 2023, according to sellers surveyed by DTN.”
Kansas City Fed: Gradual Increase in Farm Lending Persists
In an update last week from the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City, “Rebound in Farm Lending Continues,” Cortney Cowley and Ty Kreitman indicated that, “Farm lending activity continued to increase gradually alongside further growth in loan sizes.”
USDA, USTR Officials Meet in Mexico on Corn-Import Law; Wheat Dips
Bloomberg writer Eric Martin reported yesterday that, “Mexico’s proposed changes to a planned ban on imports of US corn are insufficient, the Biden administration warned, saying that it continues to consider all of its rights to respond under the free-trade agreement between the nations.”
WSJ: “Worst U.S. Avian Flu Outbreak” Persists, “There is No Historical Context for This”
Dan Frosch reported in today’s Wall Street Journal that, “Nearly a year after it began, the worst avian-influenza outbreak in U.S. history is continuing to decimate poultry flocks across the Midwest and Colorado, frustrating efforts to keep the virus from affecting the nation’s egg prices and supply.”
U.S. Sorghum Exports Dwindle on “Near-Evaporation” of Chinese Demand, as China Looks to Brazilian Corn
In its monthly Grain: World Markets and Trade report for January, the USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) indicated that, “U.S. sorghum exports for 2022/23 are forecast down 1.5 million tons to 2.5 million (Oct-Sep), the lowest since 2018/19 and the second-lowest volume of the last decade.”
ERS: “Wholesale Table-Egg Prices Peaked in December”
In its monthly Livestock, Dairy, and Poultry Outlook report yesterday, the USDA’s Economic Research Service indicated that, “Table-egg production was estimated at 635.0 million dozen in November.”
Federal Reserve: Observations on the Ag Economy- January 2023
On Wednesday, the Federal Reserve Board released its January 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.
China: Pork Prices Fall, While Soybean Production Improves, as Covid Hits Countryside
Bloomberg writer Jinglu Gu reported today that, “China is ramping up Covid preparations in rural areas ahead of Lunar New Year holidays that may unleash a surge in infections across some of the country’s poorest regions.”
In “Historic Shift,” China’s Population Falls, as its Economic Growth “Near-Historic Low”
Eleanor Olcott and Sun Yu reported yesterday at The Financial Times Online that, “China’s population fell in 2022 for the first time in decades in a historic shift that is expected to have long-term consequences for the domestic and global economies.”
FAS: Record U.S. FY 2022 Agricultural Exports to China
In a report this month from USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS), “Record U.S. FY 2022 Agricultural Exports to China,” Graham Soley indicated that, “U.S. agricultural exports to China in fiscal year (FY) 2022 were $36.4 billion and surpassed the previous year’s record with China as the largest export market for the second consecutive year.”
Food Prices Increased 0.3% in December, Up 10% From a Year Ago- Eggs Climb 59.9% Annually
Financial Times writers Colby Smith and Kate Duguid reported yesterday that, “Annual US inflation fell in December to its lowest level in more than a year, in a further sign that price pressures have peaked amid the Federal Reserve’s historic campaign to tighten monetary policy.”
China’s Population Likely Shrinking, India May Become Most Populous Country This Year
Earlier this week, Bloomberg News reported that, “China’s population likely started shrinking last year for the first time in decades, experts say, a significant milestone that will have long-term repercussions for the economy.”
Covid “Hammering” Rural Areas in China, While Wheat, Soybean, Rice Variables in Focus
Bloomberg News reported yesterday that, “Omicron has swept through China’s major cities including Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou, overwhelming hospitals and causing widely-reported, if officially unrecorded, fatalities.”
Deere Reaches Deal to Allow Farmers to Repair Own Equipment
Patience Haggin reported in today’s Wall Street Journal that, “Machinery manufacturer Deere & Co. signed a memorandum of understanding with the American Farm Bureau Federation on Sunday that the group said ensures farmers can repair their own farm equipment or take it to independent repair shops.”
China Concerned About Farmers, Countryside as Covid Surges
Late last week, Bloomberg writer Jinglu Gu reported that, “China has asked farmers to avoid large gatherings and send their Lunar New Year greetings virtually to try and curb the impact of a severe wave of Covid-19 in the countryside.”
In Divided House, “Fractiousness Could Threaten Some Significant Bills,” Including the Farm Bill
Nolan D. McCaskill reported on the front page of Saturday’s Los Angeles Times that, “Kevin McCarthy (R., Calif.) was elected speaker of the House early Saturday morning after four days and 15 ballots, resuscitating a chamber that had been paralyzed as it endured its longest struggle to elect a leader since before the Civil War.”
World Food Prices Dropped in December; China Demand in Focus; and Mississippi Barge Rates Normalize
Bloomberg writer Megan Durisin reported today that, “After a year marred by disruptions from the war in Ukraine and extreme weather, global food prices ended 2022 roughly where they started.”