Traders and analysts always sound so wise when they give a list of reasons why the market went up, down, sideways, or all three. There isn’t even a moment of hesitation when you ask. They tell you like it’s the most obvious thing in the world, something “everyone knows.” The problem is, most of the […] Read more
Ed White
Stories by Ed White
A porcine bubble?
The problem with bubbles in the market is that they don’t look like bubbles when you’re being lifted up by them. They become pretty obvious only when they pop. Something like that is happening right now in southern Manitoba, where the air that has expanded the weanling hog industry is roaring out the way that […] Read more
Manitoba weanlings not wanted in U.S.
Manitoba’s pig weanling export business is facing collapse as U.S packers shut their doors to Canadian born pigs. “We’re at risk of losing half the weanling industry right now,” said Karl Kynoch, chair of the Manitoba Pork Council. “Three weeks ago, nobody thought we were going to have this problem with the weanlings.” The collapse […] Read more
Swine inventories shrinking
Hog herd numbers are shrinking rapidly in North America, especially in Canada, and that’s likely to save the industry’s bacon. “I think this fourth quarter is just going to be generally depressing, not a disaster like in 1998,” said University of Missouri hog industry analyst Ron Plain. “It isn’t going to mean good hog prices. […] Read more
Minneapolis wheat bucks market trend
With most crop prices falling, buyers are not desperate to get grain soon. But one crop in the U.S. market has quietly rallied and buyers are bidding up prices to get that grain in their hands now. Minneapolis nearby spring wheat futures have climbed recently and are in the rare situation of an inversion, in […] Read more
Mystery food test to help prove benefits of flax
For the next two years, 250 people in the Winnipeg area will eat bagels, buns, muffins and pasta filled with mystery: do they contain ground flax? Half of the consumers will receive food that contains flax, while the other half won’t. It will be impossible for the test subjects to taste the difference, but scientists […] Read more
Dire predictions prove true
Western Producer reporter Ed White is talking to the world’s top market analysts to bring a range of philosophies and insights into the current financial crisis. In this series, the analysts discuss what happened to predictions about the world being in a long-term bull market for commodities and whether the financial crisis changes the long-term […] Read more
A deflating feeling
Barack Obama: welcome to the rest of your political life! It’s one that may contain either hyperinflation, or deflation. You might want to get your head around those two terms, because you, more than any other man on earth, will have to deal with the situation, and your historical memory will be created by how […] Read more
O-bummed out?
There was a big bounce in the commodity and equity markets yesterday. Maybe it had something to do with a guy called Barack Obama, who looked like he was going to win the U.S. presidential election. Generally there hasn’t been a big bounce on election day – there was even a drop on Ronald Reagan’s […] Read more
An Obama bounce?
Pretty much everyone is predicting a Barack Obama victory tonight. And stocks have enjoyed a nice rally today so far. Overnight overseas markets were mostly in a partying kind of mood, the TSX is vaulting higher and the Dow is trotting upwards. A lot of talking heads are attributing the positive peppiness to the election, […] Read more
