A monthly gauge of producer sentiment recorded a slightly higher score in February, but farmer and ranchers are still concerned about their finances.
The Ag Economy Barometer from Purdue University and the CME Group was up five points last month to a reading of 111 as farmers felt slightly better about their future conditions than they did in January.
“Weak crop prices continue to weigh heavily on financial expectations, with mid-February Eastern Corn Belt cash prices for corn and soybeans declining by 7% and 8%, respectively, compared to two months earlier,” Jim Mintert, director of Purdue’s Center for Commercial Agriculture, said in a statement.
High input costs remain the leading concern for growers, with 34% pointing to that factor as their chief worry for their operation over the next year. Drops in crop and livestock prices were the second largest concern (28%). The barometer’s report suggests interest rate concerns may have peaked in farm country; after reaching as high as 26% in November, just 18% of producers referred to interest rates as their top concern in February.
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While some producers are slightly more confident in their future circumstances, the feeling is not universal. In fact, the number of producers worried about their operation’s profitability has tripled since October, when seven in 100 respondents offered that sentiment; now it's 22 in 100.
According to a release accompanying the report, producers who offered “reluctance toward making large investments highlighted concerns over high production costs and weak output prices.”
The survey was conducted Feb. 12-16; USDA released a forecast the week prior that projected a major decline in farm income for 2024.
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