Farmers get the jitters

 

Farmers seem to have caught a case of the jitters, judging by a 12-point decline in their opinion about their economic future as judged by a survey conducted by Purdue University and the Chicago Mercantile Exchange.

The survey of about 400 farmers conducted in mid-March registered a decline to 140 points on the Ag Economy Barometer.

The measure for future expectations declined by 15 points to 144 and for current conditions by five points to 132.

“The drop in sentiment was influenced by falling crop prices since mid-February, along with increasing uncertainty surrounding agricultural trade and farm policy,” the research team said.