About the Ag Economy Barometer
The Purdue University/CME Group Ag Economy Barometer is a nationwide measure of the health of the U.S. agricultural economy. On the first Tuesday of each month, the Ag Economy Barometer provides a sense of the agricultural economy’s health with an index value. The index is based on a survey of 400 agricultural producers on economic sentiment each month. Quarterly, the index is accompanied by an in-depth survey of 100 agriculture and agribusiness thought leaders.
As CME Group’s roots are in agriculture, and Purdue University’s Center for Commercial Agriculture has a long history of producing cutting-edge agricultural research, this partnership is designed to create a new and important tool for producers, economists, traders, finance industry professionals and journalists who are interested in understanding the agriculture industry and the broader global economy.
Find the Ag Economy Barometer on the Bloomberg Terminal: AGECBARO, AGECCURC and AGECFTEX.
The dramatic improvement in ag producers’ sentiment that started following the November election continued into the new year. The Purdue/CME Group Ag Economy Barometer—based on a monthly survey of 400 agricultural producers from across the U.S.—reached 153 in January 2017, 21 points higher than December’s survey and 61 points higher than in October (Figure 1). Ag producers’ sentiment in January was not only the most positive recorded in the Ag Economy Barometer’s history, but it was also the biggest month-to-month sentiment change since data collection began in October 2015. The largest contributor to the sharp uptick in optimism…
Read the Full ReportJames Mintert, David Widmar, Michael Langemeier Agricultural producer sentiment rose sharply as 2016 drew to a close. December’s reading of 132 for the Purdue/CME Group Ag Economy Barometer marked the second month in a row that the index increased, rising to its highest level since data collection began in October 2015. The December reading is 16 points above November’s and 40 points higher than in October (Figure 1). The barometer is based on a monthly survey of 400 agricultural producers from across the country. Optimism about both current and future economic conditions helped drive the barometer higher during December. Although…
Read the Full ReportJames Mintert, David Widmar, Michael Langemeier Agricultural producers’ sentiment improved markedly in November, reaching its highest level since October 2015. At 116, the Purdue University/CME Group Ag Economy Barometer–a monthly survey of 400 agricultural producers from across the country–was considerably higher than October 2016’s value of 92 and also compared favorably with the early summer reading of 112 (Figure 1). Reduced pessimism about the future, motivated in part by improving corn and especially soybean prices, was the driving force behind the improvement in this month’s barometer. The Ag Economy Barometer can be broken down into two component indexes: the Index of…
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