As farmers make their decisions for the 2022 growing season, one certainty is how uncertain the market will be.
A number of factors will play into the upcoming crop as fertilizer prices rise and supply is in question, while demand continues to be an issue moving forward, reports KPVI. Adding to the uncertainty, the Phase 1 trade deal with China expired at the end of 2021.
According to the Wall Street Journal, Beijing’s commitment to step up purchases of U.S. goods and services under the now-expired 2020 trade pact came up with China expected to miss its targets by a wide margin.
The White House could potentially reinstate certain tariffs that were cut as part of the trade deal, but that could backfire if China cut back U.S. purchases or took measures against American companies doing business there, reports the Journal.
Mike Zuzolo, a market analyst with Global Commodity Analytics, said that makes for a likely volatile year.
“I think we’ll see greater volatility in 2022 than we did in 2021,” Zuzolo told KPVI. “It goes right back to trade.”
