Following a sharp increase to close out 2022, the Purdue University/CME Group Ag Economy Barometer had only a modest increase in January, up 4 points to a reading of 130. The rise in sentiment was primarily attributable to better expectations for the future as the Future Expectations Index improved by 5 points to 127. The Index of Current Conditions rose only 1 point to a reading of 136. 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 from Jan. 16-20.
“Although producers were a bit more optimistic about the future this month, they again reported expectations for tighter margins in 2023 than in 2022,” said James Mintert, the b
