Farm Debt Rising

Creighton Economist Ernie Goss said net farm earnings are projected to be lower in the first half of 2019 than they were in the first half of 2018 (which were lower than the same period in 2017).

"This is very likely to push bankruptcies, foreclosures and loan restructuring to the highest level in decades," Goss said in an email.

Corn prices have hovered below $4 a bushel for the past four years, while soybean prices dropped to their lowest level in a decade earlier this year, largely due to a trade fight with China that has led to a huge drop in exports to that country.