USDA Crop & Livestock Reports

AAEA members release new research in AJAE

Since the United States Secretary of Agriculture, Sonny Perdue decided to move parts of the USDA research mission out of Washington, D.C., to help with budget issues, there are many questions surrounding the future funding for research, particularly data construction and distribution. For example, will the USDA still fund crop and livestock reports?

Jeffrey Dorfman from the University of Georgia along with Jiahui Ying, Yu Chen, co-authored a new article published in the American Journal of Agricultural Economics, “Flexible Tests for USDA Report Announcement Effects in Futures Markets.”

Dorfman says, “We find USDA reports are still valuable, so USDA should keep funding and producing them. We also find that the proliferation of price sector information is actually making USDA reports more valuable, likely because the increase in, sometimes conflicting, information encourages futures market participants to take speculative positions. The USDA reports resolve the conflicts, leading the market to discover an equilibrium price.”

If you are interested in setting up an interview, please contact Allison Scheetz in the AAEA Business Office.

ABOUT AAEA: Established in 1910, the Agricultural & Applied Economics Association (AAEA) is the leading professional association for agricultural and applied economists, with 2,500 members in more than 60 countries. Members of the AAEA work in academic or government institutions as well as in industry and not-for-profit organizations, and engage in a variety of research, teaching, and outreach activities in the areas of agriculture, the environment, food, health, and international development. The AAEA publishes two journals, the American Journal of Agricultural Economics and Applied Economic Perspectives & Policy, as well as the online magazine Choices. To learn more, visit www.aaea.org.

Contact: Allison Scheetz
Senior Communications Manager
(414) 918-3190
Email: ascheetz@aaea.org