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Economic Outlook

Recent Survey Results

Mid-America Manufacturing Slumped
Region Lost Manufacturing Jobs First Two Months of 2024

February 2024 Survey Highlights:

• For the third straight month, the overall, or Business Conditions Index, hovered around growth neutral. 
• The region’s manufacturing sector lost jobs for a second straight month. 
• The wholesale price gauge sank into a range indicating only moderate inflationary pressures. 
• Over the past 12 months, according to U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data, the region’s job openings declined by 156,000, or 16.3%, while layoffs fell by 2,000, or 1.1%. 
• Every state in the nine-state region experienced a reduction in job openings and layoffs over the past 12 months.
• Exports and imports plummeted for the month.

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Rural Mainstreet Economy in Negative Territory for Sixth Straight Month
44% of Bankers Reported Worsening Farm Finances

February 2024 Survey Results at a Glance:

• For a sixth straight month, the overall Rural Mainstreet Index sank below growth neutral.
• Almost three-fourths of bank CEOs named low farm commodity prices as the biggest risk for farms in 2024.
• More than four of 10 bankers named falling farm commodity prices as the biggest risk for community banks in 2024.
• Approximately 44% of bankers indicated that the financial positions of farmers in their area had weakened over the past six months.
• Farmland prices expanded for the 51st straight month. 
• The farm equipment sales index slumped below growth neutral for the eighth time in the past nine months. 
 

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