Ag Barometer: Three-Fourths of Farmers Worried About Coronavirus
AgBarometer March Dip 040820
The global pandemic is clearly weighing on the minds of farmers. The new Purdue University CME Group Ag Economy Barometer recorded its largest one-month drop in sentiment.
The reading plummeted in March. It dipped 47points or 28% from the month earlier to a reading of 121.
The decline erased the sentiment improvement that took place this past fall and winter. It leaves the index unchanged from its reading in September of last year.
Producers said they were concerned about how the coronavirus will impact their farms this year. The barometer says 74% of farmers saying they were either "fairly worried" or "very worried".