What's going on?

Dear oh Deere, shares of US agricultural equipment manufacturer John Deere rose by 2% on Friday despite the company delivering a quarterly profit that was below expectations.

What does this mean?

The US-China trade war has led to China imposing import taxes (a.k.a. tariffs) on US agricultural products like soybeans � but American farmers appeared largely unphased in the last quarter, replacing old machines and putting in orders for new ones (like a brand new combine harvester). But Deere�s quarterly profit was fallow � higher costs to transport its goods and rising prices of key materials aluminum and steel led the company to seek cost-cutting measures and raise its prices.

Why should I care?

For markets: Speaking of moving goods, enter A.P. Moeller Maersk.

Last week, Denmark�s third-largest company, Maersk � which transports about 20% of the world�s consumer goods by sea � cut its expectations for profit in 2018, with higher fuel costs to blame. Maersk�s moved left while everyone�s gone right: on Friday, it announced plans to spin off its oil drilling business and sell down its stake in French oil company Total (at a time when oil firms are raking in the cash). Maersk is doubling down on its logistics, freight and shipping businesses, despite concerns that trade wars could derail the industry�s growth.

The bigger picture: Deere�s been shopping for growth and efficiency.

In December, Deere bought German road construction company, Wirtgen Group (you can�t get to the farm without a road to get you there) � which made up almost half of Deere�s sales growth last quarter. It also bought Blue River Technology, a firm that uses computer vision and artificial intelligence to make farming more efficient through more cost-effective spraying of herbicides to weed out� weeds from crops.