The American Petroleum Institute, an oil-industry trade group, is pressing the White House for a major revamp of the way regulators determine exemptions to a program that requires refiners to blend biofuels into gasoline, according to a report by Argus.
At issue are hardship waivers from the biofuel blend mandate and the proposed requirement that larger companies blend more biofuels in coming years as an offset. The proposal, according to the report, would require companies seeking exemptions to show that any economic hardship is due directly to the biofuel program. It would also be restricted to companies with limited collective refining capacity, cutting off larger enterprises that own multiple small refining units that presently qualify. The proposal would bar hiking blending requirements for other oil companies to offset those exemptions, the report said, noting that is a tough sell to biofuel and crop groups fearful that unchecked program waivers would cut into demand for their crops.
The report said the group is seeking to pass legislation that would pair updates to the exemption program with the year-round authorization of E15 (15% ethanol) – a top priority for ethanol producers.
Trump eases tariff on beef, other foods
President Donald Trump late Friday afternoon signed an executive order that lowers reciprocal tariffs on beef, coffee and numerous other foods.
The move comes after Trump said he would move to boost imports from Argentina – a proposal that contributed to a sharp selloff for cattle futures, which have retreated from mid-October highs. Beef has moved into the spotlight, to the chagrin of ranchers, after Trump made repeated calls to lower beef prices. The president previously took credit for soaring cattle prices, saying they were the result of tariffs. The rally has instead been tied to a sharp drop in cattle numbers over recent years due to drought and other factors, along with the closing of the U.S. southern border to imports of Mexican feeder cattle due to a New World Screwworm outbreak.
Notable closes
It was a big day for data, with the release of the November Crop Production and supply/demand reports. If that wasn’t enough, USDA also threw in six weeks of daily export sales data that had been pent up due to the recently ended government shutdown.
In the end, it was all a bit bearish for corn, soybeans and wheat, but it was cotton that took it hardest after USDA raised its production forecast by nearly 900,000 bales. December cotton fell 41 points to 62.49 cents, closing at a contract low.