Highlights
Yesterday’s U.S. commodity market was down on harvest pressure and China sent a record 125 military aircraft to encircle Taiwan “as a resolute punishment for Taiwan’s president's continuous fabrication of ‘Taiwan independence’ nonsense.”
The commodity markets fear that politicians may pull a Jimmy Carter stunt and “punish” China like Carter punished the Soviet Union for its Christmas Eve 1979 invasion of Afghanistan. On 4 January 1980, Carter banned U.S. grain exports to the Soviet Union.
Reuters News Service Ag Reporter Karen Braun reported yesterday:
"China imported 11.37 million mts (418 mln bu) of soybeans in September, up 59% from a year ago and easily record-high for the month. That follows August's all-time monthly record. Jan-Sept. imports are up 8% over the same period a year ago, which was record at the time."