Argy Bargy Deja Vu

After news only last week that the Argy senate had agreed to extend President Cristina Fernandez's powers to set export taxes on grains, she reminded farmers who's the boss by vetoing a bill granting tax relief to an emergency farm bill.

The bill was supposed to provide benefits and tax relief for those farmers worst hit by drought in 2009. In a stunning faux pas Presidential ally Alberto Cantero told reporters that he had signed the bill, which was eight months in the making, without actually reading it!

Wheat planting in Argentina is now finished, and soybean planting doesn't begin until November. Corn planting starts earlier but is relatively unprofitable and carries the added risk of export bans and higher inputs.

So the bulk of Argy farmers have nothing much to do between now and November. You can probably work the rest out for yourself, it's not like they've got loads of soybeans to export anyway after last season's disaster.

Overnight they've announced restrictions on grain and beef sales from Aug. 28. to Sept. 4.