WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. and CHICAGO — Farmer sentiment weakened in January as the Purdue University/CME Group Ag Economy Barometer declined 6 points to a reading of 119, its second-lowest reading since July 2020. The Index of Current Conditions fell 13 points to a reading of 133, while the Index of Future Expectations changed little in January, down 2 points to a reading of 112. The Ag Economy Barometer is calculated each month from 400 U.S. agricultural producers’ responses to a telephone survey. This month’s survey was conducted Jan. 17-21.
“Rising farm input costs and ongoing supply chain disruptions appear to be contributing to producers’ weaker perception of current conditions and expectations of their farm’s financial performance in 2022 when compared to last year,” said James Mintert, the barometer’s principal investigator and director of Purdue University’s Center for Commercial…
