By Justin Walker
Communications Specialist
Attitudes toward the current state of agriculture appear to be on the rise, according to the most recent Ag Economy Barometer.
The June barometer showed that sentiments rose to 143, up two points from May results. The increase came as a surprise as prices dropped for many commodities. Despite trade conditions with China, crop conditions in the United States improved, raising expectations.
According to the Purdue University Center for Commercial Agriculture, who administers the survey to 400 farmers and ranchers across the United States, futures for corn, wheat and soybeans were down by the completion of the June survey.
The uptick in the barometer occurred at a time of uncertainty in agriculture. The June survey results showed a decrease in expected good times for agriculture, down to 26 percent compared to 32 percent in May. At the same time, expected bad times also diminished, down from 54 percent the previous month to 46 percent. Five year projections for both bad and good times also saw declines.
The study also found that 30 percent of growers expect soybean prices to decline over the next year, up 3 percent from two months prior and doubled from January. Those believing prices would increase also grew over that time period, reaching 25 percent in June, compared to 20 percent in April and 18 percent in January.
Survey respondents reported little acreage change in 2018. More than 75 percent said no change occurred from 2017 to current numbers. Eight percent reported an increase of 10 percent or more, while 6 percent said their crop acreage rose to 10 percent over the last year.
As far as planned acreage changes for 2019, 86 percent of those surveyed said there were no changes expected on their farms. Roughly 3 percent of respondents said they planned to increase by 10 percent or more, while 6 percent said they would increase up to 10 percent.