Observations on the Ag Economy- February 2019

Sixth District- Atlanta– “Agricultural conditions across the District were mixed. Recent reports showed that most of the District was drought-free, with the exception of small areas in south Florida and coastal Louisiana where conditions were abnormally dry.  The February forecast for Florida’s orange crops was unchanged from the previous month but remained significantly ahead of last year’s production. Since November, weekly cash prices were up for corn, soybeans, beef and broilers, while cotton and rice prices were down.” * Seventh District- Chicago– “Prices for corn were up a bit over the reporting period, while soybean and wheat prices moved lower.Eighth District- St. Louis– “District agriculture conditions declined slightly from the previous reporting period. The number of acres of winter wheat planted this season decreased slightly from last year’s total.