- For an eighth straight month, the overall index rose above growth neutral.
- More than eight of 10 bankers reported negative impacts on the local economy from tariffs.
- But only 4 of 10 bankers supported cutting recently enacted tariffs on imported goods.
- Farmland values continued to decline.
- More than one-fifth of bank CEOs support raising Federal Reserve interest rates two or more times in 2018.
Overall: The overall index declined to 51.5 from 54.8 in August. The index ranges between 0 and 100 with 50.0 representing growth neutral.
“Our surveys over the last several months indicate that the Rural Mainstreet economy is expanding outside of agriculture. However, the negative impacts of recent trade skirmishes have begun to surface, weakening already anemic grain prices,” said Ernie Goss, PhD, Jack A. MacAllister Chair in Regional Economics at Creighton University’s Heider College of Business.