The American Bankers Association says agriculture lending increased 7.9 percent in 2015. The Farm Bank Performance Report released this week by ABA found farm banks produced $100.3 billion in agriculture loans at the end of last year. Farm banks reported continued improvement in asset quality in 2015, with non-current loans declining to a pre-recession level of 0.47 percent of total loans. The report also shows that small and micro-small loans made up almost half of agricultural lending by banks in 2015. Looking ahead to 2016 and beyond, an ABA spokesperson said the banks remain well positioned to continue serving the needs of their communities despite any potential turbulence in the ag sector. The nation’s 1,976 farm banks — defined as those whose ratio of domestic farm loans to total domestic loans is greater than or equal to the industry average — added more than 2,500 jobs, a 2.9 percent increase, and employed 90,000 rural Americans.
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