On Wednesday 4 March, USDA Secretary Perdue testified before the House Agriculture Committee on the state of the farm economy, following are a few highlights:
Production and input expenses (adjusted for inflation) are expected to increase year over year for the first time since 2014.
Farm debt is projected to grow to $425 billion, with about 62 percent ($265 billion) in real estate and about 38 percent ($160 billion) in non-real estate.
Debt to equity forecast to be at 13.59 in 2020 – the highest level since 2003.
Cash income is expected to drop in 2020; but that is based in part on higher cash income levels in 2019 from marketing crop inventories due to lower production.
In all, it is a tenuous economic...
What You Need to Know Today: Russia rejected calls for a ceasefire in the Black Sea, including a proposal to halt attacks on civilian shipping that could help restore grain flows from Ukrainian ports. Tyson Foods announced plans to permanently close its Joslin, Illinois, beef processing facili...
The big news in the cattle markets yesterday was Tyson Foods’ move to close two more beef plants. One of them, the Joslin, Illinois, plant was shuttered immediately after the announcement. The other, in Eagle Mountain, Utah, is a case-ready plant that does not slaughter cattle. Tyson also...
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released the Consumer Price Index (CPI) on Wednesday. In July, the CPI rose 0.1 percent, seasonally adjusted, and rose 3.4 percent over the last 12 months, not seasonally adjusted. The index for all items less food and energy, or the “core” infla...
