Winter Wheat Out of Dormancy Early; Trump Big News to Foreign Ag
This year’s U.S. winter wheat crop came out of dormancy early and in worse overall condition than last year’s crop.
The USDA says 51% of U.S. winter wheat is in good to excellent shape, compared to 59% a year ago, but the numbers vary widely, from 100% good to excellent in California to 39% good to excellent in Colorado and Texas.
Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad is in D.C. this week to meet with lawmakers and U.S. State Department officials about his nomination as Ambassador to China.
The trip comes as Chinese President Xi Jinping prepares to meet with President Trump in Florida this weekend, but Brandstad said he won’t be joining those discussions.
Brandstad will meet with a number of senators and meet with people from the State Department and get briefed. He will also meet with Senate Foreign Relations Chairman Bob Corker and other committee members.
** President Trump is dominating more than just U.S. news. According to a survey by London-based commodity news site Agrimoney, “Trump was flagged by nearly 20% of respondents as among key factors for agribusiness. One investor said, “Mr. Trump is the elephant in every room, including Ag.”
This, after Trump emphatically withdrew the U.S. from the proposed 12-nation Trans-Pacific Partnership, promised to renegotiate NAFTA, and threatened higher tariffs on Chinese and Mexican goods. The administration says it prefers bilateral trade agreements to maximize U.S. leverage over multilateral, regional, or global pacts.