Friday, May 16, 2014

Three regional Federal Reserve banks report farmland prices declined during first quarter

Farmland values in parts of the Midwest and South fell by an average of 6 percent in the first quarter of this year, according to a survey by the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, which includes parts of Arkansas, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri and Tennessee, Jacob Bunge reports for The Wall Street Journal.

The Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City, which covers all or parts of Colorado, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Wyoming, reported that prices for non-irrigated farmland declined by 1.4 percent during the first quarter.

The Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, which includes parts of Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan and Wisconsin, reported a 1 percent quarter-to-quarter decline, the first in five years. (Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago graphic)

Farmland value increased from 2009 to 2013, but "in February, U.S. Department of Agriculture forecasters projected that U.S. net farm income would decline 27 percent to $95.8 billion this year, the lowest level since 2010, as a result of declines in crop prices," Bunge writes. "Last year, net farm income reached a nominal record high of $130.5 billion." (Read more)

No comments: