(NAFB.com) – Farmer sentiment weakened sharply in January as the Purdue University/CME Group Ag Economy Barometer dropped from 136 in December to 113 in January. The Current Conditions Index dropped 19 points while the Future Expectations Index dipped 25 points. Among the five indexes that make up the overall AEB Index, the largest decline was in the question asking participants whether U.S. agriculture would have good times or bad times during the next five years. The index for that question fell from 122 to 88, marking its lowest point since September 2024. One-half of the producers surveyed reported that their farm operations were worse off than a year ago. The respondents expecting a larger operating loan this year compared to last year rose to 21 percent, up from 18 percent last year. Thirty-one percent of those producers say it’s because they were carrying over unpaid operating debt from the prior year, up from 23 percent in 2025.