Agriculture Sector

[winston]

Agricultural Stocks: Fatten Up Your Portfolio on Food Price Inflation By Don Miller

For most Americans, the cost of food hasn't always been such a big deal.

For the better part of the last 30 years, food supplies were plentiful and the economy provided enough wealth to keep cupboards stocked.

But my how things have changed since the financial meltdown of 2008. Today, food inflation has more people concerned about the cost of groceries -- and how they're going to pay for them.

Yet for investors, the same food price inflation dilemma presents an investment opportunity that is ripe for the picking.

With that in mind, agricultural stocks are where to look for the low-hanging fruit as food prices keep heading higher

http://moneymorning.com/2012/04/19/agri ... inflation/

[winston]

Hybrid Grass Produces Cyanide Gas, Kills Herd of Cattle
June 24th, 2012

A mysterious mass death of a herd of cattle has prompted a federal investigation in Central Texas.

Preliminary test results are blaming the deaths on the grass the cows were eating when they got sick.

The cows dropped dead several weeks ago on a ranch in Elgin, just east of Austin.

http://www.weareaustin.com/news/top-sto ... 2393.shtml

[winston]

Drought Hits 56 Percent of Continental U.S.; ‘Significant Toll’ on Crops

The prolonged heat across the Midwest has not only set temperature records, it is also expanding and intensifying drought conditions — and relief isn’t on the horizon for most areas, the National Weather Service reported Thursday.

Drought conditions are present in 56 percent of the continental U.S., according to the weekly Drought Monitor.

That’s the most in the 12 years that the data have been compiled, topping the previous record of 55 percent set on Aug. 26, 2003. It’s also up five percentage points from the previous week.

http://usnews.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/ ... crops?lite

[winston]

A BIG REVERSAL FOR THE "AG" COMPLEX by Larsen Kusick

A classic "boom and bust" sector is breaking out of a long bust…

DBA is a "one click" way to own a basket of agricultural commodities like cattle, coffee, corn, wheat, soybeans, and sugar.

Prices for these products depend on a variety of "slow" seasonal factors, ranging from the weather to how much seed farmers plant. So once a trend gets going in the "ag" complex, it tends to run for many months, giving it its "boom and bust" nature.

As you can see in the chart below, DBA saw a big boom in late 2010 and early 2011. Elevated prices caused farmers to plant bigger crops… And that led to a long bust through the rest of 2011 and most of 2012.

But hot, dry weather in the U.S. and Russia is driving up grain prices. And DBA has seen a major reversal. The fund is up 13% in a month. If 2010 is a guide, this new trend could turn into a rally that lasts for months.


Source: Daily Wealth

[winston]

THE LONG-TERM "AG" BOOM CONTINUES by Larsen Kusick

One of the market's biggest long-term uptrends shows no sign of stopping.

While the "official" statistics on inflation have been tame so far in 2012, they're obvious to anyone watching food prices.

As "paper money," like the U.S. dollar, loses its purchasing power, prices go up for agricultural commodities like corn, soybeans, and wheat. Since the start of this year, prices for these critical crops are up between 23% and 40%.

Predicting crop prices is a tricky game. A few months of good weather, including adequate rainfall, could send prices lower. However, the one thing that is certain is that farmers will continue to plant as much as they can to take advantage of high prices.

That means steady growth for businesses like Monsanto (MON), which sells a wide range of seeds, including corn and soybeans.

As you can see in today's chart, Monsanto has been in a steady uptrend since late 2010. Last week, shares broke out to their highest level in more than three years. It's just the latest sign that the long-term "ag" boom deserves investors' attention.


Source: www.dailywealth.com

[behappyalways]

What in the world
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=pl ... Sizops50Eo

[winston]

Australia's farmers on the front line of global weather extremes By Geoff Hiscock

Sydney, Australia (CNN) -- This week's burst of catastrophic bushfires in Australia continues a run of extreme weather events that, aside from the toll in human suffering, is pushing up the cost of doing business in the Australian agricultural sector.

http://edition.cnn.com/2013/01/10/busin ... index.html

[winston]

As Expected, Commodities
Surged... Here's What to Do Now By Jeff Clark
Thursday, May 15, 2014
In February, we said commodity bulls were going to make a lot of money in 2014.

So far, they have.

It started earlier this year when the price of coffee surged. Traders who took our advice to buy in January had a chance to capture a year's worth of returns in just two months.

Other agricultural commodities were starting to show the same sort of potential in February. We recommended buying the PowerShares Agriculture Commodity Fund (DBA), an exchange-traded fund made up of 17 different agricultural commodities.

If you took our advice, you're sitting on solid gains today. But there's more upside ahead…

When we first took a look at DBA back in February, the fund was trading near $25 per share. We said that over time, DBA could rally to its 2013 high near $28 per share… and possibly even reach its 2012 high above $30.50 per share.

As you can see from the following chart, DBA has already surpassed its first target…

Please Enable Images to See this

DBA is up around 14% in the past three months. That's an excellent return for a year, let alone just 90 days. And there are more gains to come.

You see, last week, we told you the U.S. dollar looks set to break down. If it does, we said it would send the price of gold soaring. But it will also send other commodities higher. Many commodities typically trade opposite of the dollar. These commodities' prices fall when the dollar rallies… and rally when the dollar falls.

If the dollar does break down – which looks likely – agricultural commodity prices will move higher and DBA should be able to reach its upper target of $30.50 per share. That's where traders who bought on my recommendation in February should look to take profits.

But be sure to protect the gains you have by setting a stop just below $28 per share. That's DBA's former resistance line – which should now serve as support. If DBA falls below that level, the short-term rally phase is over and the stock will likely fall toward the next support line at about $26. That sort of move would erase all your gains.

Protect your gains by being willing to sell DBA if it breaks below $28. Otherwise, let's see if the current rally can reach our upside target and give us a year's worth of gains in just a few months.

Best regards and good trading,

Jeff Clark

[winston]

Agriculture giants are breaking down… Potash and Mosaic fall to three-month lows.

[winston]

One of the Best-Looking Trade Setups Today By Jeff Clark

It's time to buy agricultural commodities again.

In February, I said commodity bulls were going to make a lot of money this year. The PowerShares Agricultural Commodity Fund (DBA) – an exchange-traded fund made up of 17 different agricultural commodities – had been declining for three years… And it was showing signs that it was finally ready to move higher.

Readers who took my advice to buy made solid gains. DBA rallied 20% over the next three months.

But in May, I warned you to protect your profits. I said if DBA couldn't hold above the $28 level, it would likely drop to the next support line at about $26. And that's exactly what happened. DBA has given back about 60% of its gains from earlier this year.

Now, DBA looks set to bounce higher…

Take a look at this updated chart of DBA…

Please Enable Images to See this

DBA closed just under $26 per share on Friday – down about 60% from earlier this year. The stock is still up around 8% in 2014 – which is on par with the around 7.5% gain in the S&P 500.

But unlike the stock market – which looks poised for a short-term pullback – DBA is resting on support around $26 and looks ready for at least a short-term bounce.

This is a low-risk area in which to buy agricultural commodities. If the commodity rally resumes, DBA should be able to climb back above resistance at $28 per share… and possibly reach its 2012 high at just above $30.50 per share by the end of the year.

On the other hand, if support fails and DBA falls to around $25.50, traders can exit the position for a small loss.

Using Friday's closing price, that's around $4.50 worth of potential profit and just $0.50 of downside risk. That's a nine-to-one reward-to-risk ratio… which makes agricultural commodities one of the best-looking trade setups in the market right now.

Source: www.growthstockwire.com