May 3, 2019
Today’s update briefly reviews recent news articles highlighting executive branch action relating to China, the USMCA (Canada and Mexico) and Japan. In addition, news articles documenting current strain in the U.S. agricultural economy, where ongoing disputes may be a contributing factor, are also included. China Trade Issues Politico writer Adam Behsudi reported on Wednesday that, “The United States and China […]
April 30, 2019
Last week, the American Bankers Association (ABA) released its annual Farm Bank Performance Report. Today’s update includes several highlights from the ABA update. The ABA report indicated that, “The U.S. banking industry is a major provider of credit to agriculture with more than $186 billion in farm loans extended— approximately 50 percent of the total farm credit outstanding in […]
April 22, 2019
The Creighton University Rural Mainstreet Index for March rose to its highest level since December of last year according to the monthly survey of bank CEOs in rural areas of a 10-state region dependent on agriculture and/or energy. A large share of survey responses occurred before most of the negative impacts of the recent floods […]
April 10, 2019
On Tuesday, the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Agriculture held a hearing regarding the Administration’s FY 2020 Agriculture Department Budget Request, and heard testimony from Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue. During the discussion part of the meeting, significant attention was focused on recent flooding in the Midwest, and disaster aid legislation. Today’s update highlights that discussion, as well as other developments […]
April 8, 2019
Late last week, Los Angeles Times writer Don Lee reported that, “Despite hopes that a U.S.-China trade deal is at hand, President Trump said Thursday that some key issues have yet to be resolved and that they are not close enough for him to announce a summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping. “Trump said that he should know ‘over the next four weeks’ whether […]
April 8, 2019
Introduction As farms continue to consolidate it becomes increasingly important to assess a farm’s management skills. At a certain farm size, it is no longer easy or feasible for the manager or managers to wear every management hat. How does the management team determine when to focus on professional development, delegate management tasks among mangers, […]
April 3, 2019
The Ag Economy Barometer drifted lower in March to a reading of 133 down from 136 a month earlier. Increasing concerns about future economic conditions drove the barometer lower as the Index of Future Expectations declined to 139 in March compared to an index value of 145 in February. This contrasted with producers’ Index of Current Conditions, […]
April 1, 2019
Flooding and gloomy price prospects for corn and soybeans are diminishing optimism in the Corn Belt as spring planting nears. Recent news articles continue to discuss the ongoing negative impacts of Midwestern floods on an already battered farm economy. Meanwhile, corn and soybean prices fell on Friday after the U.S. Department of Agriculture released data […]
March 25, 2019
Today’s update looks briefly at how relatively steady farmland values are impacting farm financial variables, and then discusses recent developments relating to farmland values in Illinois, Iowa and Nebraska. Background At USDA’s annual Agricultural Outlook Forum in February, USDA Chief Economist Robert C. Johansson pointed out that, “As farm income has fallen over the past few years, farm equity has also fallen, but […]
March 21, 2019
U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin are scheduled to travel to China next week to start a new round of face-to-face trade talks. As the negotiations continue, many Corn Belt producers face substantial financial losses due to flooding in the Midwest. The ongoing trade uncertainty and flooding come at time when the agricultural economy is struggling to rebound […]
