Russia

According to a recent analysis by U.S. Wheat Associates, since the highs of 2021, freight prices have dropped to lows not seen since June 2020.  Coupled with a recent break in wheat prices, decreased ocean freight costs have helped turn the tides back in the importers' favor.   ...

As Canadian farmers plan their operating costs for another planting season, a major consideration is the extremely high cost of fertilizer inputs.  This past spring already expensive fertilizer prices took another last-minute increase when the Canadian government announced import tariff charges just weeks before planting season.  ...

Oil prices climbed slightly over the past two weeks following the news that Russia is going to trim oil production in the months ahead.  Patrick DeHaan with GasBuddy said while Russian oil is facing sanctions because of the invasion of Ukraine, that does not mean this production cut won’t impact international prices.   “Much ...

The USDA is out with it’s latest world wheat outlook, and Russia and Australia made most of the noise.   “Australia's production we raised that 1.4 million tons to 38 million tons the current forecast would be the third consecutive record large crop in Australia.  With Russia th...

The bipartisan Promoting Agriculture Safeguards and Security, or PASS Act was recently introduced in both the U.S. House and Senate.  Supporters of the legislation say it will protect U.S. national security by preventing foreign adversaries from taking any ownership or control of agricultural land and businesses in the United States.  The bil...

According to ERS, Ukraine's corn and wheat exports have almost returned to seasonal-average levels since the summer of 2022.  The change follows the Black Sea Grain Initiative to reopen the Black Sea shipping routes.  Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 led to elevated security risks and infrastructure damage, causing Ukraine's seaports to be almost completely cut off from March through

Oil prices continue the march higher we’ve seen through the first three weeks of 2023.  West Texas Crude was up slightly in Monday’s trade, around $81 per barrel.  Patrick DeHaan with Gasbuddy said there are several issues pushing oil prices higher, and tops on that list, China.   “Reopening its economy, the...

In some ways, 2023 will be very similar to 2022 when it comes to the farm economy.  But in other ways, it’s expected to be very different.  One of those differences will be the supply chain, which has made strong improvements over the past 3-4 months, removing some of the uncertainty farmers faced last year.  And input costs, includ...

Nearly every year for the past century, or so, U.S. wheat growers have gradually reduced wheat plantings.  For example, growers cut plantings this past year by about a million acres but, perhaps that trend is turning around for 2023.   “...

Consumers enjoyed a bit of relief at both the gas and diesel pump to wrap up 2022.  Fuel prices started to fall in some locations in early November, and continued through December, thanks to dropping oil prices, and economic uncertainty both in the U.S., but a...