This week Chris and Duane dive into the US/China trade developments. Contrary to the skeptics, there are seriously legitimate reasons to believe that China will in fact live up to promises regarding US agriculture in this Phase One agreement, at least for the first year. The scope of the increase in US ag purchases is very notable. If it is true, and we believe there are reasons to believe that it is, then China's purchases will expand far beyond just soybeans. To reach these dollar figures, China's US ag purchases will need to be running on all cylinders and we should expect to see noteworthy evidence in the 1st Quarter of 2020.

Also, we know that producers are facing serious challenges in the financial sector following several years where working capital may have declined, which especially is coming to light with a year like 2019, where yields may have been well below recent years and where harvest costs were elevated. If you find yourself stressed by the challenges in 2019 and the stresses associated with 2020, listen to this podcast and listen all the way to the end. There can be light at the end of the tunnel, but you must confidently embrace the challenges by finding unity in your operation and sometimes seeking the guidance from someone outside of your operation. We have 10 days until a joyous Christmas holiday! Soon it will be a New Year! From the birth of a Savior to the birth of a New Year, there is joy and hope in new beginnings. Embrace and enjoy this Christmas season with your family and search your own operation for new beginnings and the birth of optimism. They say that the holiday season is a time where stress levels can become extremely difficult to handle and we all know that to be true. But possibly more true than that is the fact that a focus on new beginnings brings joy and peace. Let's all get to that point, for from that point is where things get better!

While our Sunday Week Ahead Outlook is largely market focused, for some reason our spontaneous podcast added an additional dimension this week. Maybe this message is just for you? Lots of supportive/constructive developments have recently evolved and just maybe we can build some confidence in an improving situation during the next 90+ days--improving both the financial outlook for 2019 inventory and 2020 production planning. Not only is it a time for some optimism, it is time for confident optimism! Listen, discern and hopefully enjoy today's podcast!