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Ag lenders: farmers should do ok financially in 2024

Ag lenders say economic conditions have softened and margins are thinner compared to recent years, but financial stress in agriculture should be limited this year.

Ty Kreitman, an associate economist with the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City, says agriculture is coming off a few years of exceptional strength.

“That strength allows borrowers to put cash on their balance sheet.”

But even though the outlook is ok this year, he says several risks remain for the ag sector including higher interest rates.

“On average, farmers and ranchers have an 8.5 to 9.5% interest rate or greater.”

Kreitman says what happens beyond 2024 depends on how long those higher interest rates last and what happens with commodity prices.

Brownfield interviewed Kreitman at the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s Ag Advisory meeting in Overland Park, Kansas.