AERC 2026

U.S. Fertilizer Prices Erase War Spike, But El Nino Keeps Food Inflation Risk Elevated The good news for US farmers is that urea fertilizer prices have returned to pre-US-Iran conflict levels after spiking from late February through mid-April. This is great news for farmers, though they are not out of the woods, as drought continues to plague some of the nation’s top agricultural belts. Prices for granular urea in New Orleans have slumped 36% since peaking at $710 per short ton in mid-April. Spot prices are currently $453, back to pre-conflict...

Debt Tsunami: The Alan Greenspan Legacy Authored by Jeffrey Tucker via The Epoch Times, Alan Greenspan, Fed chair from 1987 to 2006, embodies a striking ideological shift from gold-standard advocate to architect of the modern easy-money, debt-fueled financial system. He has now died at the age of 100, and this marks a good time to assess his legacy and explain why it matters. In the 1960s, as a young economist influenced by Ayn Rand and Objectivism, Greenspan strongly supported the gold standard. In his 1966 essay “Gold and Economic Freedom,” he argued...

Trump On Iran Halting Talks: "We'll Keep Blockade" - Signals Tehran Can't Outlast US Summary Iran announces halt to all exchanges with US, citing Israeli aggression in Lebanon. Trump says 'haven't heard' this from Tehran, vows to keep US naval blockade in place. Iran overnight initiated fresh attacks on neighboring Kuwait and even released video showing footage of a ballistic missile launch. The US bombed radar & drone sites in Iran in response to the Iranians having shot down a US drone over the weekend. Reports of foreign jets over Iranian airspace. Iran negotiator Ghalibaf charges...