For the sixth time this year, the overall Rural Mainstreet Index sank below growth neutral. That’s according to the monthly survey of bank CEOs in rural areas of a ten-state region dependent on agriculture or energy. The overall reading for August dropped to 48.1 after rising above growth-neutral to 50.6 in July and 51.9 in June. The index ranges between 0 and 100, with a reading of 50.0 representing neutral growth. “Weak agriculture commodity prices for grain producers continue to dampen economic activity in the ten-state region,” said Dr. Ernie Goss of Creighton University. “Bank CEOs and chief loan officers expect almost one-fifth, or 19.5 percent, of grain farmers to experience negative cash flow for 2025.” According to Jeff Bonnett, an ag banker in Illinois, “As current prices for corn and soybeans are still below break-even, the majority of the state’s producers will struggle to show operational profitability.”
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