commodity prices

Year-over-year consumer inflation in July was 8.5%, down from the 9.1% we saw in June.  The month-over-month inflation was 0%, though that was largely the result of a 4.6% drop in energy prices.  Food prices reported a nearly 11% year over year increase in July, with a 1% month-over-month jump.   ...

The Purdue University/CME Group Ag Economy Barometer farmer sentiment index rose six points in July to a reading of 103.  Producers were somewhat more optimistic about both their current and future economic conditions on their farms compared to June.  Ev...

Late last week, USDA released its latest Ag Prices Report, and to no one’s surprise, there were two key topics of discussion.  The rising commodity prices received by farmers in June, and the rising cost of inputs.  Gary Crawford breaks down the details.   If you...

What will be the effects of higher interest rates on farmers and agriculture? "I'm almost gun-shy of making strong predictions in the environment we've been in, in the last couple years," noted USDA Chief economist Seth Meyer.  But he went add, "Rising interest rates in the United States strengthens the dollar, makes us a little less export competitive." ...

The cost of growing crops could outpace revenue for many farmers this year, making it more difficult to break even despite rising commodity prices and increasing domestic and global demand. An American Farm Bureau Market Intel Report says that farm production costs are likely to rise 6% in 2022, which follows a 12% year an hour earlier ...

The news sounds good for American farmers at first glance, but a deeper dive reveals many challenges in farm country. Recent USDA figures show farmers are receiving more for their commodities. Sean Ellis with the Idaho Farm Bureau Federation said the non-farming community may think producers are getting rich off the increase, but he said that couldn’t be further from the truth. He ... Read Mor

Earlier this week, USDA announced a new USDA Market News Mobile Application. The app provides producers and everyone else in the supply chain with instant access to current and historical market information. The initial version of the free app includes nearly 800 livestock, poultry, and grain market reports, with additional commodities added throughout the coming year ...

USDA's top economist, Seth Meyer, says crop prices are still high enough for many producers to justify paying these very high prices for fall application fertilizers for next year's crop. "But the last thing you want to do is put out a bunch of money for fertilizer and then see corn prices drop and be unhedged against those higher fertilizer prices ...

"Total production expenses are forecast to increase 29.8 billion, or about 8.3%," USDA Chief Economist Seth Meyer said in 2021, farmers this year will end up paying more for almost every major farm input compared to 2020. "32% on fuel and oil, 15% on those, kinda, livestock inputs, or the purchases of livestock ...

The latest USDA prices index for October shows what many in the farming community already know; crop and livestock prices while still roughly 20% higher than a year ago are moderating. According to Gary Crawford, prices, in some cases dropped by 2% for crops and about 1% for livestock in October ...