Agricultural Summary and Outlook

After deteriorating rapidly in the early 1980s, the financial condition of agriculture leveled off by the middle of the decade. Since then, most measures of the sector's financial condition have strengthened. In 1987, total farm income was higher and production expenses were lower than in the previous year. The improved financial condition of farmers was also apparent in the expanded equity position of their balance sheets, which resulted from a combination of increased asset values and reduced debt burdens