Insights and Stories of Karl Plume

May. 7, 2020 at 7:13 pm CDT

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. live cattle futures surged by their daily trading limits for a second straight session on Thursday on soaring beef prices and concerns about meat shortages because of recent packing plant closures due to the coronavirus. Shuttered slaughterhouses across North America due to the pandemic have […]

By Karl Plume

May. 7, 2020 at 4:14 pm CDT

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. grain and soybean futures prices rebounded on Thursday on renewed Chinese buying of corn and soy and as forecasts for sub-freezing temperatures across the country stoked concerns that some vulnerable crops may sustain damage. Gains, however, were tempered by plentiful supplies and worries about demand […]

By Karl Plume

Apr. 21, 2020 at 9:25 pm CDT

Chicago | Reuters — Agricultural commodities trader Bunge said on Tuesday it will sell 35 of its interior U.S. grain elevators to Zen-Noh Grain, dramatically reducing its grain origination network in the United States. Financial details of the sale with the subsidiary of Japan’s Zen-Noh Group were not disclosed, and […]

By Karl Plume

Apr. 17, 2020 at 6:59 pm CDT

Chicago | Reuters — President Donald Trump on Friday announced a $19 billion relief program to help U.S. farmers cope with the impact of the coronavirus, including $16 billion in direct payments to producers and mass purchases of meat, dairy, vegetables and other products (all figures US$). The U.S. Agriculture […]

By Karl Plume, P.J. Huffstutter

Apr. 13, 2020 at 8:18 pm CDT

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. livestock futures tumbled on Monday on worries about declining U.S. meat processing capacity after Smithfield Foods announced Sunday it would indefinitely shut one of its pork plants due to novel coronavirus infections among workers. The closure at Sioux Falls, S.D., affecting four to five per […]

By Karl Plume