Farmer Sentiment Weakens Amid Increasing Marketing Risk Concerns

The Ag Economy Barometer weakened slightly in February, declining 7 points to a reading of 136 compared to 143 a month earlier. The modest decline puts the barometer back near the levels observed in October and November 2018 and just 4 points below the level of February 2018. The downward shift in the barometer was primarily the result of weakness in producers’ perception of current economic conditions on their farms as the Index of Current Conditions fell from a reading of 132 in January to 119 in February. Producers’ expectations regarding future conditions also weakened, but the decline was just 3 points, falling from 148 in January to 145 in February.