Author: staff

June 30 (Reuters) – Negotiators from more than a dozen major U.S. trading partners are rushing to reach agreements with U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration by a July 9 deadline to avoid import tariffs jumping to higher levels, and Trump and his team kept up the pressure on Monday. With only a limited deal with Britain completed so far, Trump has repeatedly threatened just to send a series of letters to trading partners identifying what their new tariff rate will be after the deadline, and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the risk of tariffs going up next week is real. “We have countries that are negotiating in good faith, but…

By Kaori Kaneko and Chang-Ran Kim TOKYO, July 1 (Reuters) – Japan will not sacrifice the agricultural sector as part of its tariff talks with the United States, its top negotiator said on Tuesday, after President Donald Trump complained that the key Asian ally was not buying American rice. Trump’s comment, made in a social media post on Monday, comes as Tokyo scrambles to convince the U.S. to scrap a 25% tariff on Japanese cars and a 24% reciprocal tariff on other Japanese imports. The reciprocal tariff has been paused until July 9, but Japan has yet to secure a trade deal after nearly three months of negotiations. While the auto…

What Happened Corn, soybean, and wheat futures plunged this past week, reflecting continued good weather for growing conditions and harvest pressure for wheat. Soybean and wheat futures rallied into Friday, June 20, yet also managed to reverse and finish lower that same day. This technical activity likely encouraged those who bought at lower prices to exit. It is also likely that sell stops were triggered as prices descended, adding additional selling pressure. Corn futures declined despite losing 2 percentage points in the good/excellent category in the June 23 Crop Progress report. The overriding factors are: expected improvement in crop conditions…

What Happened Despite strong demand, the lack of inclement weather has limited selling opportunities this year, and time is running out for a weather rally. Producers were hoping for a spring weather rally that never materialized, but with planting delays, some are still hopeful for summer weather rally. Timely rains and lack of excessive heat have left traders assuming a bumper crop is on the horizon both here and in South America, keeping selling pressure in place. Since the end of April, December corn had been trading around $4.40 until recently, when it fell below $4.20. Soybeans managed a run…

Your education and experiences may match the job description requirements, but even if you seem perfect on paper, you need to enthusiastically articulate your skills to an interviewer. It’s time to get intentional about interview preparation. First impressions make a difference, so don’t overlook the importance of a professional wardrobe and a firm handshake. Beyond this, it’s up to you to shine verbally during the interview. According to an AgCareers.com survey of agricultural hiring managers and HR professionals, the best way candidates could stand out from the crowd is researching the organization before interacting. Where do you start? Candidates today…

In this episode of 15 Minutes with a Farmer, Scott Kuegel, a third-generation farmer from Owensboro, Kentucky, discusses the interesting history of his farm, the significance of family dynamics, his state yield contest win, and the importance of financial management in farming.  Listen to the Podcast Subscribe to 15 Minutes With a Farmer on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts. Please rate and review us! Scott Kuegel’s father named the farm after a nearby creek. Courtesy of Scott Kuegel Meet Scott Kuegel Scott Kuegel’s grandfather, a sharecropper, founded the family farm, which grew significantly under the management…

By Gary Schnitkey, Nick Paulson, Jonathan Coppess, and Carl Zulauf The Reconciliation Bills moving through Congress include proposals that would increase the number of base acres eligible for farm program payments. For farms that planted acreage to eligible crops from 2019–2023, base acres could be added to Farm Service Agency (FSA) farms if current base acres are exceeded by the sum of three acreage categories: Plantings (and prevent plantings) of covered crops from 2019–2023Plantings (and prevent plantings) to eligible non-covered crops from 2019–2023Unassigned cotton base acres. This proposal will add base acres, almost certainly up to the 30 million acre…

By Cami Koons Not all farmers and ranchers will agree in a discussion about climate change, but it would be difficult to find a Midwest producer who did not value climate-related data addressing drought, precipitation, temperature, and frost outlooks.  These are all pieces of data gathered and distributed by the Ames-based Midwest Climate Hub, which along with the other 10 regional climate hubs under the USDA, is slated to be cut from the federal agriculture budget.  The U.S. House appropriations bill that sets the 2026 fiscal year budgets for agriculture, rural development, food and drug administration, and related agencies includes…

By Cami Koons State Climatologist Justin Glisan said the June 23–29 reporting period was the “wettest” of the season, with precipitation totals 2-4 inches above normal in some areas.  While the rain hindered some field work, it was overall beneficial for Iowa crops which continue to rate highly according to the crop progress and condition report from the USDA.  Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig said corn tassels are beginning to show, “signaling crop development remains on track.”  According to the report, around 3% of Iowa corn was beginning to silk and the crop rated 85% good or excellent. Soybeans were also…

1. Soybeans, Grains Higher in Overnight Trading Soybeans and grains were higher in overnight trading amid positive crush reports from the USDA.  About 6.11 million tons of soybeans (204 million bushels) were crushed for oil in May, the agency said in a report this week. That’s up from 6.07 million from April and a 6.3% gain from May of last year.  Crude oil production rose 1% monthly and 7% annually to 2.42 billion pounds, while soybean-once-refined oil output was reported at 1.92 billion pounds, up 10% from April and 7% from May 2024.  Corn used for alcohol and other uses…