Beef is on display at a Walmart in Beijing on Sept. 23, 2019. (File photo: Reuters/Tingshu Wang)

China applies to join Trans-Pacific trade pact

Second-biggest economy seeks to add to economic clout

Updated, Sept. 17 — Beijing | Reuters — Japan said it would have to determine if China meets the “extremely high standards” of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) after the world’s second-biggest economy formally applied to join. Commerce Minister Wang Wentao submitted China’s application to join the free trade agreement in […] Read more

CME December 2021 lean hogs (candlesticks) with Bollinger bands (20,2). (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Nearby hogs up in rebound off six-month low

CME cattle futures slide

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange lean hog futures ended higher in nearby contract months on Wednesday, as the market rebounded from a drop to its lowest prices in more than six months. Most-active December hogs recovered after dropping 12.5 per cent since the start of the month on concerns about slowing U.S. pork […] Read more


CME December 2021 lean hogs (candlesticks) with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages (pink, brown and black lines). (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: CME hogs hit six-month lows

Chicago cattle futures rebound

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago Mercantile Exchange lean hog futures dropped to their lowest prices in more than six months on Tuesday, while cattle futures recovered a day after hitting June lows on concerns about a fire at a major Nebraska beef plant. The hog market extended recent losses under pressure from concerns about the […] Read more



CBOT December 2021 corn (candlesticks) with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages (yellow, orange and dark green lines). (Barchart)

U.S. grains: Corn, soy, wheat slide on stronger U.S. dollar, export concerns

Market awaits USDA crop forecasts ahead of corn, soy harvests

Chicago | Reuters — Chicago corn, soybean and wheat futures slipped Tuesday as a stronger dollar, export concerns and early U.S. harvest activity weighed on the complex ahead of the U.S. Agriculture Department’s monthly supply and demand report, due out Friday. Analysts anticipate USDA’s Sept. 10 outlook to increase estimates of U.S. corn and soybean […] Read more

Photo: Thinkstock

Slow U.S. corn shipments could pressure supply forecasts

Reuters – The United States has already secured a record corn export campaign for the nearly concluded season, but the shipments are unlikely to match the government’s current forecast because the pace has recently been too slow. Disappointing export inspections last week – a marketing year low – might be an indication that the U.S. […] Read more


The Archer Daniels Midland Co. (ADM) logo is displayed on a screen on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York, U.S., May 3, 2018.
 Photo: REUTERS/Brendan McDermid

ADM quarterly profit surges amid strong U.S. corn exports to China

Reuters – U.S. grain merchant Archer-Daniels-Midland Co on Tuesday reported quarterly profit leapt 52 percent due to strong exports and oilseed crushing margins. The bigger-than-expected earnings sent shares to a two-week high and extended a recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, which last year hurt demand for the company’s ethanol and food products. Shares were up […] Read more




Syngenta’s headquarters in Basel, Switzerland. (Photo courtesy Syngenta)

Syngenta’s Shanghai IPO to fund growth, acquisitions

Hong Kong/Zurich | Reuters — Syngenta Group will use the proceeds from its US$10 billion initial public offering (IPO) to fund internal growth and an acquisition spree to snare more of the $100 billion market for seeds and sprays, the agrichemical giant said on Friday. The company’s prospectus to list on Shanghai’s Nasdaq-style STAR Market […] Read more