News

Fed report shows operating loan rates slowly rising for farmers

The latest quarterly report by the Federal Reserve shows ag bankers are slowly raising interest rates on operating loans to farmers.

Lenders charged an average rate of nearly 5 percent this spring, up from 3.5 percent during the final quarter of 2015 when rates were at historical lows.

The Fed report says while delinquency rates remain low, additional increases could put more pressure on some farm operations.

The Federal Reserve anticipates further gradual increases to keep up with inflation.