by Guest » August 13, 2016, 7:10 am
Much of the grain shipped through the Twin Ports goes to Europe and the Mediterranean countries, but conditions throughout the country and the world can affect these shipments.
The ports' main competition is barge traffic on the Mississippi River. If river traffic is particularly heavy, the overflow may go through the Twin Ports. If river traffic is disrupted, the same result may occur as grain shippers seek another outlet to move their product.
Over the years, I've seen things like a good harvest in Brazil or a drought in Australia affect Twin Ports grain traffic. If Russia or Europe has a poor grain crop, Twin Ports shipments usually increase. When there's a shortage somewhere in the world, buyers turn to the United States to buy from its stockpiles.
In recent years, several Twin Ports grain terminals were bought by hedge funds to hold grain waiting for prices to rise. It sounds like some of these terminals have now changed hands, so new owners might be using them to actually ship grain rather than hoard it.
I don't know what specifically may be affecting this year's grain traffic there, but it could be any or all of these factors.
Much of the grain shipped through the Twin Ports goes to Europe and the Mediterranean countries, but conditions throughout the country and the world can affect these shipments.
The ports' main competition is barge traffic on the Mississippi River. If river traffic is particularly heavy, the overflow may go through the Twin Ports. If river traffic is disrupted, the same result may occur as grain shippers seek another outlet to move their product.
Over the years, I've seen things like a good harvest in Brazil or a drought in Australia affect Twin Ports grain traffic. If Russia or Europe has a poor grain crop, Twin Ports shipments usually increase. When there's a shortage somewhere in the world, buyers turn to the United States to buy from its stockpiles.
In recent years, several Twin Ports grain terminals were bought by hedge funds to hold grain waiting for prices to rise. It sounds like some of these terminals have now changed hands, so new owners might be using them to actually ship grain rather than hoard it.
I don't know what specifically may be affecting this year's grain traffic there, but it could be any or all of these factors.