By Farm Progress Staff
The Purdue University/CME Group Ag Economy Barometer rose for only the second time since May, up 9 points to a reading of 125 in December. The Ag Economy Barometer is calculated each month from 400 U.S. agricultural producers’ responses to a telephone survey.
“Excellent crop yields this fall, combined with strong crop prices, provided many producers with their most positive cash flow in recent years. That combination helps explain the year-end rise in the financial index as well as the barometer overall,” says James Mintert, the barometer’s principal investigator and director of Purdue University’s Center for Commercial Agriculture.