Rabobank, Media Release, 14 March 2021
Australian farmers are forecasting another productive and profitable year ahead, with rural sentiment still at historically-high levels thanks to “perfect” summer conditions in much of the nation’s east and exceptionally strong commodity prices.
The latest quarterly Rabobank Rural Confidence Survey, released today, reveals ongoing optimism among Australian farmers who have not only rebounded from significant drought conditions a year ago, but also stared down immense uncertainty and, in some sectors, market volatility as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The survey found while overall net confidence had eased slightly from December’s stellar reading, Australian farmer sentiment was still at one of the top 10 levels in the survey’s 20-year history.
With promising seasonal conditions heading into autumn and strong demand continuing to underpin livestock prices, Australian farmers have also revised up their income expectations for 2021 and this is driving a major investment injection into farm business productivity over the year ahead.
Meanwhile, so positive are business conditions in Australian agriculture right now that the Rural Confidence Survey’s farm viability index – measuring farmers’ assessments of their own business viability – continues to climb, eclipsing the highest level set last quarter to sit at a new record.
