University of Illinois Library at Urbana-Champaign ACES No -5Y^ topy % TWENTY YEARS of PRICES and INCOMES Received by Illinois Farmers 1929-1948 By G. L. Jordan Bulletin 542 University of Illinois Agricultural Experiment Station CONTENTS Page GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE PERIOD 36 AGRICULTURAL INCOME IN ILLINOIS 42 PRICES RECEIVED BY ILLINOIS FARMERS 46 CHANGES IN PRICES OF AND INCOMES FROM SELECTED FARM PRODUCTS 52 SEASONAL MOVEMENTS OF PRICES OF ILLINOIS FARM PRODUCTS, 1931-1941 61 SUMMARY 65 APPENDIX TABLES 66 Urbana, Illinois September, 1950 Publications in the Bulletin series report the results of investigations made or sponsored by the Experiment Station TWENTY YEARS OF PRICES AND INCOMES RECEIVED BY ILLINOIS FARMERS 1929-1948 By G. L. Jordan, Professor of Agricultural Economics BECAUSE THE PERIOD 1929-1948 was one of great change, it affords an opportunity for more comprehensive analyses of some economic questions than would be possible in a less varied period. A number of studies of particular interest to Illinois farmers can be made. Several such studies are reported in this bulletin, including: the behavior of prices and incomes during a period of extreme fluctua- tion; changes in the importance of farm enterprises in Illinois as sources of income both during business cycles and over twenty years; and relative changes in prices farmers received and prices they paid. During these twenty years the prices farmers received, when meas- ured from peaks to troughs of cycles, fluctuated more than did the prices they paid for commodities used in production and for family consumption. This meant that the purchasing power of a unit of farm output changed considerably. Such changes affected the farmers' ability to provide a high level of living for their families and to pay their debts. During periods of rising and high prices farmers prospered as the result of the smaller rise in costs. During periods of declining and low prices the failure of farm costs to decline as much as the prices farmers received caused great financial hardship. Not only did the purchasing power of a unit of farm products, in terms of goods and services farmers buy, change during the period, but so did the relationship between prices of individual farm products. This change in relationship was caused largely by unusual changes in demand resulting from the war and postwar needs and by changes in costs of production resulting from improved methods. Over the past seventy-five years the contributions of tobacco, fruits, eggs, chickens, and dairy products to gross U. S. farm income have increased sub- stantially and the contributions of wheat, hogs, and cattle have de- clined. 1 Even during the twenty years being reviewed there were shifts in emphasis and relative importance of various crops, livestock, and livestock products as sources of income on Illinois farms. 1 Strauss, Frederick. The composition of gross farm income since the Civil War. National Bureau of Economic Research Bulletin 78, April 28, 1940. 35 36 Bulletin No. 542 Changes in demand were very much more important than changes in the quantity of farm products as causes of price changes, and still more important as causes of changes in farm incomes. GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE PERIOD World-wide economic and political upheavals characterized the twenty years covered by this study. Instability of prices and incomes led to unstable government in some countries, more dependence on government in others, and finally to World War II and its aftermath. The most stabilizing forces in the United States during this period were the steady increase in population and the absence of wide fluctua- tions in the volume of production of farm products. Contributing to and reflecting the uncertainty of the period were wide year-to-year variations in industrial output and construction, and rapid and large changes in prices, incomes, and exports. Total population increased steadily; agricultural population de- clined. The total population of the United States, if the armed forces overseas are included, increased every year. If the armed forces over- MILL 140 130 120 IONS ^> — — d 1 U 1 AL U.b. rUrULAIiviN 110 100 90 80 70 — 60 50 _ 40 U S FARM POPULATION i 30 20 10 - 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1929 '30 '31 '32 '33 '34 '35 '36 '37 '38 '39 '40 '41 '42 43 '44 '45 '46 '47 1948 Population of the United States on January 1, 1929-1948. (Fig. 1) Twenty Years of Prices and Incomes 37 seas are not counted, population declined in 1944 and 1945 and in- creased greatly in 1946. Total population increased from 121.1 million on January 1, 1929, to 145.4 million on January 1, 1948 (Fig. 1). This rise in population created a demand for more farm products. While total population increased 24.3 million during the period, the farm population declined 2.8 million. As a result of improved methods of production, however, a smaller farm population was able to produce more in 1948 than was produced in 1929. In 1929 the farm population made up 25 percent of the total population; in 1948 only 19 percent. The smaller the number of farm families who participate in receiving any given level of farm income the higher the income per family. During the war and postwar years the rise in income per farm family was greater, percentagewise, than the rise in total farm income. Industrial production was less stable than farm output. The level of living of the people depends upon the volume of goods and services produced. 2 The level of prices depends upon the quantity of goods and services offered for sale in relation to the amount of money buyers are willing to spend. Agricultural production fluctuated very little from 1929 to 1939 (Fig. 2) . Thereafter there was a gradual but substantial rise in output until 1944, and the high level of 1944 was well maintained through 1948. Part of the wartime increase was due to favorable weather, part to improved technology (better varieties and more efficient power machinery), and part to strenuous efforts on the part of the reduced number of farmers. Agricultural production was much more stable than prices of farm products. Industrial production fluctuated greatly during the period under review (Fig. 2) . Output was governed largely by prospects for profits and by war needs. Prices of industrial products fluctuated much less than prices of farm products (Fig. 3 and Table 4 in Appendix), but output fluctuated more than it did for farm products. Wage-rate poli- cies of organized labor and the insensitiveness of such costs as light, heat, power, and transportation doubtless contributed to the forced 2 Federal agencies compute separate indexes of agricultural production and industrial production, but there is no good measure of the volume of services performed. The value of consumers' expenditures for various types of services has, however, been computed by the U. S. Department of Commerce for the period 1929-1948. See "Consumer Expenditures, 1929-43." Survey of Current Business, June, 1944, p. 6, and "Personal Consumption Expenditures by Type of Products. 1942-48," Survey of Current Business, July, 1949. p. 23. by William Shaw. Bulletin No. 542 240 220 200 180 160 140 x o 120 z 100 80 60 40 20 VOLUME OF INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTION-^ *■ VOLUME OF AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTION ,-\ ^, /L VALUE OF CONSTRUCTION V ^CONTRACT AWARDS 1929 '30 '31 '32 '33 '34 '35 '36 '37 '38 '39 '40 '41 '42 '43 '44 '45 '46 '47 1948 Indexes of volume of agricultural and industrial production in the United States (1935-1939 = 100), and index of value of total U. S. construction contract awards (1923-1925 = 100), 1929-1948. (Fig. 2) closing of factories as the demand for the products declined. The en- suing unemployment contributed directly to the collapse of prices of farm products during depressions. Industrial production increased more during the war than did agricultural production. Land is an important limiting factor in agri- cultural output, but the availability of labor and the assurance of profits were the most important limiting factors in industrial output. Government contracts assured profits on war work, and large increases in wage rates and patriotic motives induced a great increase in the number of industrial workers. In peacetime such large increases in output of agricultural or indus- trial products would normally tend to depress prices. During World War II, however, prices rose in spite of the increased production and would have risen much higher had there not been price controls and rationing. The upward pressure on prices resulted from the fact that the excess production was siphoned off for war use and did not come back on the consumers' market although consumers had greatly in- creased incomes and were ready to buy. Prices did rise rapidly in 1946 when controls were removed. By then consumers had built up a reserve of buying power in the form of savings and an unsatisfied demand for all sorts of both durable and nondurable consumers' goods and were both able and willing to buy a great quantity of goods. Also, the fact Twenty Yeaes of Pbices and Incomes 39 200 ^' 180 160 INDEXEo vjr wnuLLOHu (1926 = 100) . rKIULo /> 140 120 X ^V>j FARM PRODUCTS. # — '' /' Q 100 z 80 ^><^ ^OTHER THAN 60 40 FARM PRODUCTS ^ALL COMMODITIES 20 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1929 '30 '31 '32 '33 '34 '35 '36 '37 '38 '39 '40 '41 '42 '43 '44 '45 '46 '47 1948 Indexes of wholesale prices in the United States, 1929-1948 (data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics). (Fig. 3) that a relatively large fraction, compared with prewar, of the national output of both agricultural and industrial products was exported dur- ing 1946, 1947, and 1948 tended to keep prices up in spite of the high production. Two opposing forces are at work during peacetime: from the standpoint of national welfare we wish maximum output; from the standpoint of the producer we want a high price per unit. Only with maximum output can we have maximum consumption and the highest level of living. But the larger the output the lower the price per unit, all other factors remaining unchanged. For some farm products, out- put in excess of normal (recent average production) not only reduces the price per unit but makes the total value of the large quantity less than the total value of a smaller quantity. Sometimes reductions in cost as the result of improved methods of farming offset the effect of the reduced market value. When this happens there is, of course, a great economic gain to society in the larger output. Volume of building and construction fluctuated widely. The wide fluctuation in construction that has been going on for many decades is one of the most disturbing elements in our economy. It appears to be cyclical in nature, with the average cycle lasting fifteen years or more. Because the construction data in Fig. 2 are in dollar values, the fluctuations shown are greater than fluctuations in volume of con- struction. Prices of farm products and farm income would fluctuate much less if industrial production and construction were stabilized more. 40 Bulletin No. 542 200 929 '30 '31 '32 '33 '34 '35 '36 '37 '38 '39 '40 '41 '42 '43 '44 '45 '46 '47 1948 Disposable personal income, agricultural income, deposits in all banks on June 30 plus currency outside banks, and rate of turnover of deposits in commercial banks, United States, 1929-1948. (Fig. 4) Personal income also fluctuated widely. The amount of personal income received by the people of the United States fluctuated greatly during this twenty-year period (Fig. 4). The high point of 1929 (85.1 billion dollars) was followed by a collapse to a postwar low in 1933 of 46.6 billion dollars after which there was a substantial recovery to 74 billion dollars in 1937. This was followed by a decline in 1938 to 68 billion dollars and a recovery to 78.3 billion dollars in 1940. It was not until 1941 that the 1929 income was exceeded, but after we entered World War II, personal incomes spiraled upward to a peak of 211.9 billion dollars in 1948. (Because of heavy income taxes beginning in 1943, the disposable personal income during and following the latter part of the war was considerably less than the total personal income. Farmers are interested primarily in disposable income because it affects consumers' demand for farm products more than total income.) These wide fluctuations in total personal income were associated with wide fluctuations in prices of farm products. As incomes rose prices rose; as incomes fell prices fell. The great increases in income were made possible by a large expansion in the supply of money in the hands of individuals, businesses, and the government. The increase in the supply of money resulted from bank-credit expansion, that is, borrowings from banks by individuals, businesses, or the government. Contraction of personal incomes takes place when bank loans are repaid or people, and especially large business concerns, keep more money in the bank and spend less freely. Twenty Years of Prices and Incomes 41 Total bank deposits were about 51 billion dollars on December 31, 1929, 38 billion in 1933, 68 billion dollars in 1941, and 142 billion dollars in mid- 1948. Money in circulation outside of banks rose from 4% billion dollars in 1929 to 28 billion dollars in 1948. The rate at which we spent our money also varied. The faster we spend our money the more business a dollar of money supply will facilitate in a year. One dollar spent twice a month — that changes hands twice — will facilitate just as much business as two dollars spent only once a month. The annual rate of turnover of combined demand and time deposits in all commercial banks in the United States was 29.9 in 1929, 14.8 in 1932, 9.7 in 1945, and about 12.0 in 1947. The high rate of spending in 1929 was the result of optimism and lots of specu- lation; the low rate in 1932 was due to pessimism and the desire to 300 Personal income, disposable personal income, and agricultural income, United States, 1929-1948 (plotted on a semilogarithrnic scale). (Fig. 5) 42 Bulletin No. 542 conserve cash balances. The 1945 rate of spending was so low because people could not spend their money. This was the last war year and goods were scarce, prices were fixed at a modest level, and personal incomes and bank deposits were very high. By 1947 more goods were available and commodity prices were no longer controlled. Except for wartimes when goods are allocated to consumers and prices are controlled, high levels of national income and high rates of turnover of money occur at the same time. Both tend to permit prices to rise above what they would have been at lower income and turn- over levels. Both tend to decline together and depress prices. National agricultural income changes with total personal income but is a small fraction of it, averaging 13 percent for the period (Fig. 5 and Table 5 in Appendix). Percentagewise national agricultural income fluctuated more widely from period to period than did the total of personal incomes — the decline from 1929 to 1933 was greater and the rise from 1933 to 1948 was greater. (The ratio scale used in Fig. 5 makes it easier to directly compare rates of change over a pe- riod of time but can be deceiving with regard to actual amounts.) AGRICULTURAL INCOME IN ILLINOIS Annual income from farm marketings varied from 256 to 1,877 million dollars. Cash income from the sale of crops, livestock, and livestock products by Illinois farmers fluctuated from 593 million 2.0 < - - TOTAL CASH ILLINOIS FAR INCOME FROM M MARKETINGS - y^ FROM LIV / . LIVESTOC ESTOCK AND - K PRODUCTS : /— ' *■■&:■':■'■':■■:■'■'■':■ >>«*:•.•••.■::••■•■•'•'•'•.' 1 1- *<36% OF TOTAL ^•^^ . ..'•. FROM CROPS h I- \ ,;:,i , ■ 1 , , m- ;&T"'t .A .:■.*:■■■ t . .f ..•*.;:; .- .1 . f . 1929 '30 '31 '32 '33 '34 '35 '36 '37 '38 '39 '40 '41 '42 '43 '44 '45 '46 '47 1948 Cash income from farm marketings in Illinois, 1929-1948 (the solid line near the broken line represents 36 percent of total cash income from Illinois farm marketings). (Fig. 6) Twenty Years of Prices and Incomes 43 dollars in 1929 to a low of 256 million dollars in 1932, then to a new high of 1,877 million dollars in 1948 (Table 1, Figs. 6 and 7). In addi- tion Illinois farmers received government cash payments in connec- tion with various federal farm programs ranging from $650,000 in 1933 to a high of $58,062,000 in 1943. On the average, cash income from farm marketings in Illinois, excluding government payments, was about 5.9 percent of comparable income for the nation. The percentage varied from a low of 5.2 in 1934 to a high of 6.5 percent in 1940. From 1929 to 1935 the average Illinois cash income from marketings was only 5.4 percent of the comparable national agricultural income. From 1936 to 1941 the average was 6.2 percent; for the four war years. 1942 to 1945, it was 5.8, and following the war it was somewhat above the average figure for the twenty -year period. The increase in proportion of national agricultural income coming to Illinois after 1935 was largely due to crops, with most of the credit 2000 Cash income from farm marketings and government payments in Illi- nois, 1929-1948 (similar to Fig. 6 but plotted on a semilogarithmic scale). (Fig. 7) 44 Bulletin No. 542 Table 1. — Cash Income From Farm Marketings and Government Payments, Illinois, 1929-1948 a (in Thousands of Dollars) Cash income from farm marketings From crops Value From livestock and livestock products Percent of national income from crops Value Percent of national income from livestock and products Total Income from Value Percent of „ national Z°™™ income ment from total farm marketings pay- ments Grand total value 1929 $217,784 1930 174,363 1931 103,695 1932 78,780 1933 105,521 1934 112,262 1935 109,600 1936 191,681 1937 194,920 1938 174,147 1939 189,415 1940 202,884 1941 247,701 1942 311,724 1943 380,823 1944 424,261 1945 435,555 1946 584,532 1947 787,780 1948 740,007 4.4 4.5 4.1 3.9 4.3 3.7 3.7 5.3 4.9 5.5 5.6 5.8 5.3 4.9 4.8 4.6 5.4 $375,705 323,412 239,853 177,315 188,538 214,880 272,828 317,395 334,580 311,552 297,810 340,869 455,414 634,467 751,048 739,432 6.6 753,150 6.3 879,272 6.4 1,121,689 6.8 1,137,073 6.7 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.5 6.6 6.7 6.8 7.0 7.1 7.1 $593,489 497,775 343,548 256,095 294,059 327,142 382,428 509,076 529,500 485,699 487,225 543,753 703,115 946,191 1,131,871 1,163,693 1,188,705 1,463,804 1,909,469 1,877,080 5.3 5.5 5.4 5.4 5.5 5.2 5.4 6.1 6.0 6.3 6.2 6.5 6.3 6.2 5.9 5.8 5.5 6.0 6.3 6.1 $ 650 22,162 34,010 16,369 15,393 11,549 46,454 35,750 33,509 38,716 58,062 38,789 36,574 35,183 11,151 10,402 $593,489 497,775 343,548 256,095 294,709 349,304 416,438 525,445 544,893 497,248 533,679 579 , 503 736,624 984,907 1,189,933 1,202,482 1,225,279 1,498,987 1,920,620 1,887,482 Source: Illinois Cooperative Crop Reporting Service, Springfield, Illinois. going to soybeans. From 1929 to 1935 income of Illinois farmers from the sale of crops averaged 4.1 percent and from livestock and livestock products 6.4 percent of the respective national totals. For the period 1936 to 1941 the Illinois fraction derived from crops was 5.4 percent and from livestock and products 6.8 percent. This was a much greater percentage increase for crops than for livestock and products. During the period 1942 to 1945 the fraction was 4.75 percent for crops and 6.6 for liyestock and products. During the war livestock and products gained relative to crops; both actually declined as a percentage of the national totals. After the war the value of crops sold by Illinois farmers recovered to approximately the favorable prewar percentage of the national total. The European demand for U. S. exports of grain was very strong following the war and helped to support grain prices. For the entire period income from the sale of crops averaged 36 percent and income from the sale of livestock and products averaged 64 percent of the income received by Illinois farmers from farm marketings. Twenty Years of Prices and Incomes 45 s tr 34 if t 32 q: 30 o a. 1 28 ui g 26 2 24 22 o 20 o 18 16 z 12 ui o 5 10 CL DAIRY PRODUCTS-^ EGGS-^ 1929 '30 '31 '32 '33 '34 '35 '36 '37 '38 '39 '40 '41 '42 '43 '44 '45 '46 '47 I94( Gross income from selected farm products as percentage of gross income from all important crops, livestock, and livestock products combined for the same year, Illinois, 1929-1948. (Fig. 8) 46 Bulletin No. 542 Importance of individual commodities as sources of income changed. Four outstanding relationships are shown by Fig. 8 and Tables 6 and 7 in Appendix: (1) the predominance of corn as a source of gross farm income 1 in Illinois; (2) the leadership of hogs among the livestock groups; (3) the downward trend, percentagewise, in dairy products, chickens, and wheat as sources of gross income; and (4) the very rapid increase in the importance of soybeans. (Fig. 8 includes all items that made up as much as 1 percent of the total, on the average, for the period.) Hogs were by far the most important single source of cash income for Illinois farmers (Fig. 9 and Tables 8 and 9 in Appendix). Cattle and corn were next in importance. The fraction provided by dairy products declined so greatly over the twenty-year period and the fraction provided by soybeans rose so greatly that they were about equal in 1948. Wheat, oats, and eggs were relatively less important as a source of cash income, and chickens, sheep, and lambs were of minor importance. Fruits and vegetables were also minor sources of cash in- come for the state as a whole. PRICES RECEIVED BY ILLINOIS FARMERS Prices received fluctuated more than prices paid by farmers. Prices received by Illinois farmers for products sold fluctuated widely over the 20 years 1929 to 1948 (Fig. 10 and Table 10 in Appendix) . In only one year following 1920 had prices received by Illinois farmers been as high as in 1929. Then came a collapse from 151 percent of the 1910- 1914 average in 1929 to 63 percent in 1932, a decline of almost 60 per- cent in three years. Prices in 1933 averaged about the same as in 1932, but a sharp recovery took place between March and July in 1933, and with minor interruptions continued to mid- 1937. On a monthly basis the index stood at 148 in July, 1937. This was a rise of 130 percent from 1932 and almost equal to the 1929 average. Following mid- 1937 there was another decline from which there was no sustained recovery until late 1940. After our entry into the war, prices of farm products rose rapidly until price ceilings checked the rise in 1943. Another very rapid rise occurred after price controls were removed in June, 1946. By 1947 the index was about 50 percent higher than the previous war- induced high yearly average of 202 in 1920. 1 Gross income refers to cash income plus the value of produce used on the farm. The gross income from corn, for example, includes the value of corn fed on the farm. The value of the corn fed is also included in the gross income from livestock and livestock products. Twenty Years of Prices and Incomes 47 s 16 < CO a: 14 o 1 12 10 2 or 2 DAIRY PRODUCTS EGGS 3 20 111 K x 18 10 < o 16 |.« i- H z 10 uj v o u o 0. 6 4 2 1929 '30 '31 '32 '33 '34 '35 '36 '37 '38 '39 '40 '41 '42 '43 '44 '45 '46 '47 1948 Cash receipts from farm marketings of selected farm products as per- centage of cash receipts from farm marketings of all crops, livestock, and livestock products combined for the same year, Illinois, 1929-1948. (Fig. 9) The decline from 1929 to 1932 resulted from a drastic collapse of domestic and foreign demand. The recovery following 1933 was stimu- lated by such inflationary forces as revaluation of the dollar and increased government spending. Money supply increased rapidly as 48 Bulletin No. 542 1929 '30 '31 '32 '33 '34 '35 '36 '37 '38 '39 '40 '41 '42 '43 '44 '45 '46 '47 1948 Indexes of prices received by Illinois farmers for farm products sold and of prices paid by U. S. farmers for commodities, interest, and taxes (1910-1914 = 100), and the ratio between the two indexes. (Fig. 10) the result of government borrowing from banks. Investments of all banks in government securities increased from less than 7 billion dollars in mid-1932 to 17.3 billion dollars in mid-1936. Although the federal government helped finance private business during that period, total loans of all banks declined from 27.9 billion dollars in mid- 1932 to 20.6 billion dollars in mid-1936. Prices paid by farmers for commodities used in production and in the household fluctuated less in degree than prices received by farmers. When interest and taxes are included, the prices-paid index becomes still less sensitive to changes in demand. The result is that the pur- chasing power of farmers' incomes fluctuated also but less than prices of farm products. During and following World War II prices farmers received for their products rose in a spectacular manner, but a large part of the benefit from this price rise was nullified by the rise in prices paid. Nevertheless the ratio of prices received by Illinois farmers to prices paid by U. S. farmers rose 45 percent, from an average of 89 for 1935-1939 to 129 in 1947. Illinois farmers were even more Twenty Years of Prices and Incomes 49 prosperous in 1947, compared with the prewar years, than the parity ratio indicates because of a very substantial increase in farm output at the same time. Price movements of important farm products vary considerably. Most of the important forces affecting the demand for farm products tend to cause prices of all farm products to rise or all to fall (Table 11 in Appendix). The general movement of prices received by Illinois farmers for all products combined during this period can be seen from these indexes (1910-1914 = 100) : Index Index Index Index 1929... ...151 1934... ...86 1939... ...95 1944. .. ...187 1930... ...130 1935... ...115 1940... ...101 1945... ... 194 1931... ...91 1936... ...119 1941... ... 127 1946... ...231 1932... ...63 1937... ... 134 1942... ...160 1947... ...297 1933... ...65 1938... ... 102 1943... ... 187 1948... ...311 Quite often, however, individual products do not follow the trend for all products combined. Demand may be shifting and one product may therefore be favored over another. Or changes in output may affect the relative prices of various products. These changes in output affect prices more than incomes because there are usually compensating price changes for changes in output. A bumper crop brings low prices per unit and a small crop brings higher prices per unit, so with no change in demand the gross receipts vary less than output. By dividing the index of prices received for a selected commodity by the index of prices received for all farm products combined, we can observe tendencies for certain products to increase or to decrease in price relative to all prices, and we can observe which commodities are highest in price or lowest in price relative to the 1910-1914 base period. We thus have a measure of changes in the purchasing power of one unit of a selected commodity in terms of all the commodities used in the combined index. This is illustrated for the two groups, crops and livestock and livestock products, in Fig. 11, for other groups of commodities in Fig. 12, and for individual commodities in Fig. 13 and Table 12 in Appendix. In Fig. 11 the lines representing crops and livestock and livestock products are the equivalent, when properly weighted, of the line repre- senting the combined index. All tend to move in the same direction but two differences are apparent. (1) Crop prices were more sensitive to changing demand than were prices of livestock and products, or supplies of crops changed more rapidly from year to year, or both; crop prices fell farther in depressions and rose sooner and faster in the 50 Bulletin No. 542 320 - 300 280 260 240 220 200 180 x m o 160 |- 140 120 100 80 60 40 20 - 4 / / - PRICES RECEIVED BY ILLINOIS FARMERS // II II - (1910-1914 = 100) II II II II - It \ \ LIVESTOCK AND / / LIVESTOCK PRODUCTS^/ / 1 ' ' 1 ,A 1 / / / / / / / - \ * % i* * CROPS - 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1929 '30 '31 '32 '33 '34 '35 '36 '37 '38 '39 '40 '41 '42 '43 '44 '45 '46 '47 1948 Indexes of prices received by Illinois farmers for crops and livestock and livestock products, 1929-1948. (Fig. 11) early recovery period. (2) Prices of livestock and products maintained a higher level than prices of crops relative to the 1910-1914 base throughout most of the period studied. That fact probably is related to the greater reductions in costs of production of major Illinois crops than in costs of livestock production, and possibly to changes in de- mand reflecting changing consumer food habits. The change in relationship had occurred prior to 1929, as indicated by the height of the index for prices of livestock and products at that time. Over a period of years feed-grain prices are closely related to prices of live- stock and products, but the demand for bread grains has shown a tendency to weaken in peacetimes. In Figs. 12 and 13 we are not so much interested in the position of the groups relative to the 100-percent line as we are in the fluctua- tions and trends shown by the slope of the lines. The position relative to the 100-percent line is influenced by what took place between the Twenty Years of Prices and Incomes 51 base period, 1910-1914, and 1929. During that time prices of livestock and livestock products rose relative to the base period, so the indexes of prices of livestock and products were consistently higher than the indexes of prices of crops. Thus they started the 1929-1948 period at 1945 too 90 £ 80 o u °= 70 c/> UJ o o x 50 S a: 140 < o 130 - > 120 m Q UJ > 110 UJ o UJ K 100 10 90 - o x 80 FOOD GRAINS OIL-BEARING CROPS INDEXES OF PRICES RECEIVED FOR ALL CROPS AND LIVESTOCK AND LIVESTOCK PRODUCTS FOR EACH YEAR = 100 1929 '30 '31 '32 '33 '34 '35 '36 '37 '38 '39 '40 '41 '42 '43 '44 '45 '46 '47 1948 Indexes of prices received by Illinois farmers for various crops, livestock, and livestock products as percentage of index of prices received for all crops, livestock, and livestock products for the same year, 1929-1948. (Fig. 12) 52 Bulletin No. 542 a higher level than crops and stayed higher. If corrected for this dis- advantage for crops in 1929, the scales would be changed so that the 100-percent line for crops would be down about 8 percentage points and the 100-percent line for livestock and products would be raised 4 points. The correlation between changes in prices of individual commodi- ties and changes in cash income from the sale of the same commodities is not specially high. The decline in income from dairy products as a percentage of the total cash income of Illinois farmers was only partly the result of a relative decline in prices of dairy products. Neither was the increasing importance of soybeans as a source of income due to a comparable increase in prices. There have been important shifts in emphasis on different farm enterprises. CHANGES IN PRICES OF AND INCOMES FROM SELECTED FARM PRODUCTS If the prices of individual commodities had maintained the same relationship to each other that they had in 1910-1914, they would be represented by the horizontal 100-percent line in Fig. 13. Actually prices of wheat, oats, barley, sheep, and eggs were quite low compared with their relationship to prices of other commodities in 1910-1914. Those declines were offset by relatively high levels for prices of soy- beans, beef cattle, lambs, veal calves, milk cows, chickens, and wool. Corn. During the early part of the depression, 1930 and 1931, prices of crops declined much more than prices of livestock and livestock products. All prices declined, but corn prices were only about 60 per- cent as high as prices of all Illinois farm products in 1932. Corn prices recovered rapidly in 1933 and were raised to unusually high levels, relative to prices of all farm products, as the result of the drastic cut in production caused by the drouths of 1934 and 1936. Following World War II corn prices were again relatively high — at about the same level relative to prices of all farm products as they were in 1910-1914. Gross income from corn remained fairly stable at 27 to 28 percent of gross income from all farm products after the recovery from the 1930-1931 dip until 1946. Since 1946, com has made up about 30 to 32 percent of gross farm income in Illinois. Most of the corn raised in Illinois is fed to livestock by the grower Twenty Years of Prices and Incomes 53 1929 '30 '31 '32 '33 '34 '35 '36 '37 '38 '39 '40 '41 '42 '43 '44 '45 '46 '47 1948 Indexes of prices received by Illinois farmers for selected farm products, 1929-1948, and supplies of same products (indexes are expressed as per- centage of index of prices received for all farm products combined for the same year; 1910-1914 = 100 for each farm product and all farm products combined). (Fig. 13) (Graph is continued on pages 54, 57, 58, and 60) 54 Bulletin No. 542 or sold to another feeder. Cash receipts from the sale of corn are a much smaller fraction of total cash receipts than was indicated for gross income from corn. They also fluctuate widely, as shown in Fig. 9, page 47. They average about 16 percent of all cash income from marketings by Illinois farmers. 1929 '30 '31 '32 '33 '34 '35 '36 '37 '38 '39 '40 '41 '42 '43 '44 '45 '46 '47 1948 Fig. 13 — Continued Twenty Years of Prices and Incomes 55 Wheat. Wheat prices have been consistently below their 1910-1914 relationship to prices of other important Illinois farm products, except during and immediately following the devaluation of our currency in 1933 and 1934. Being an export crop, it was specially favored by devaluation. Wheat prices are dominated by world conditions; hence the high level of production in the United States in 1947 and 1948 did not cause a serious collapse in prices. Large quantities were exported to Europe. The purchases were financed directly or indirectly to a large extent by the United States and exports were also heavily subsidized. Wheat is not a major Illinois crop. Gross income from wheat makes up only 2 to 4 percent of total gross farm income in Illinois. In the 1930's it averaged about 5 percent. Wheat is a cash crop and the cash receipts from wheat as percentage of total cash receipts fluctuated with and were at about the same level as gross income. Oats. Gross income and cash receipts from sales of oats represent a rather small percentage of Illinois farm income. Gross income is a larger percentage of total gross income than cash receipts from sales of oats are of total cash receipts because so much of the oats is fed on the farm where grown. Like corn, the portion fed receives credit as part of gross income. Prices of oats, relative to prices of all farm products, fluctuated with production, but there has been a tendency for prices to strengthen, after adjustment is made for changes in production. Barley. Prices and production of barley in Illinois were quite erratic during this twenty-year period. Output was reduced by the 1934 and 1936 drouths but increased rapidly between 1936 and 1942. It is an insignificant crop in Illinois, contributing less than 1 percent to total gross farm income. Soybeans. Prices of soybeans were high relative to 1910-1914 and tended to increase relative to prices of other farm products during the latter half of the period in spite of a very large increase in production of soybeans and of the three oilseeds — soybeans, cottonseed, and flaxseed. The combination of rapidly rising production and generally rising prices relative to other farm products caused an extremely rapid rise in farm income from the sale of soybeans. They accounted for only about 1 percent of total cash farm income from 1929 to 1933 and for about 10 to 12 percent between 1942 to 1948. Production of soybeans was reduced less by the 1934 and 1936 drouths than was the production of com and small grains. 56 Bulletin No. 542 Alfalfa hay. Production of alfalfa hay in the United States in- creased rapidly during the period and the price declined relative to the prices of other farm products in Illinois. Little hay was sold in Illinois; hence cash income from sales of hay was insignificant, but all hay accounted for 3 to 5 percent of total gross income. Hogs. Cash income from sales of hogs was a larger fraction of total cash income in Illinois from 1929 to 1948 than cash income from any other commodity. The percentage ranged from a low of about 19 percent to a high of about 27 percent. In the early depression years of 1930-1933 milk was a close competitor of hogs, and in 1939 and 1940 both corn and beef cattle ranked about the same as hogs as sources of cash farm income in Illinois; but those years were exceptions. Hogs were second only to corn as the most important source of gross farm income. Much of the corn was fed to hogs, thereby reducing the cash income from corn and increasing it relatively for hogs. Hog prices relative to prices of all farm products tended to fluctuate with production from year to year, heavy marketings or large numbers being associated with relatively low prices. In general, prices of hogs strengthened in spite of a tendency for numbers to increase. They ended the period with about the same relationship to prices of all farm products combined as existed in 1910-1914. Beef cattle. Beef-cattle prices during the period averaged very high compared with prices of all farm products. Prices fluctuated widely over the period in relation to prices of all farm products and inversely with numbers of cattle (other than milk cows) on farms and ranches January 1. Cycles in production and purchasing power or relative prices are obvious (Fig. 13). Changes in income from beef cattle were more closely and positively correlated with changes in prices than with changes in numbers. Therefore income from beef cattle reached its peaks at times of relatively high prices for beef cattle when cattle numbers were low. Sheep and lambs. Lamb prices were very high during this twenty- year period compared with their relationship to prices of all farm products in 1910-1914. Sheep prices by contrast were very low and the trend in relative prices was markedly down. There was no clear relationship between prices and numbers on farms. Income from sheep and lambs combined made up less than 1 per- cent of total gross farm income in Illinois during the entire period. Twenty Years of Prices and Incomes 57 ILL. RELATIVE PRICE 180 140 130 120 110 100 90 80 70 60 V SHEEP AND LAMBS ON U. S. FARMS \ RELATIVE PRICE- SHEEP ■V-v -^ / V o_ J I I L J I L \^^ J I I L y / 50 46 42 38 34 30 26 1929 '30 '31 '32 '33 '34 '35 '36 '37 '38 '39 '40 '41 '42 '43 '44 '45 '46 '47 1948 Fig. 13 — Continued 58 Bulletin No. 542 1929 '30 '31 '32 '33 '34 '35 '36 '37 '38 '39 '40 '41 '42 '43 '44 '45 '46 '47 1948 Fig. 13 — Continued Twenty Years of Prices and Incomes 59 Veal calves. Prices of veal calves tended to be high compared with the relative prices of all farm products. They also tended to be high at the same time that prices of beef cattle were high. Milk cows. Prices of milk cows were low relative to prices of all farm products from 1930 to 1937 and high from 1938 to 1948. Milk and butterfat. During the severe depression of the early 1930's prices of milk and income from the sale of dairy products declined much less than prices and income from the sale of other farm products. Production of milk and butterfat increased at the same time. Milk prices retained their 1910-1914 relationship to prices of other farm products during the latter half of the period in spite of a phenomenal increase in milk production in the United States. Butterfat prices also retained their 1910-1914 relationship in spite of a drastic reduction in output after 1941. Dairy products were almost as important a source of farm income in Illinois as any other commodity — hogs, beef cattle, or corn — in the early 1930's, but their importance later declined greatly. In 1947 and 1948 cash receipts from dairy products were only 10 percent of cash receipts from the sale of all farm products in Illinois. If there is a severe or protracted decline in prices of farm products as a group, income from the sale of milk probably will become a larger percentage of total farm income in Illinois. Wool. Prices of wool were very erratic during the period. Prior to World War II, wool prices fluctuated with consumption but not with domestic production. We import a large fraction of our wool, and prices are governed partly by world conditions of supply and demand. The Agricultural Act of 1949 called for government support prices high enough to raise the level of wool production substantially above that of the postwar years shown in Fig. 13. Wool was a very minor source of farm income in Illinois. Chickens and eggs. Cash receipts from the sale of eggs ranged from 4 to 6 percent of total cash receipts by Illinois farmers during the latter half of the period studied. The longer-time tendency appeared to be downward. Chicken sales brought in from one-half to two-thirds as much as egg sales and the downward trend appeared to be stronger for chickens than for eggs (Fig. 9). During the period egg prices were very low and declining when compared with the 1910-1914 relationship of prices of all farm prod- ucts. Prices of chickens were relatively high and declining. 60 Bulletin No. 542 Egg production in the United States was 50 percent higher after World War II than in the mid-1930's. Following a great increase dur- ing World War II, chicken production declined to prewar levels by 1948. 1929 '30 '31 '32 '33 '34 '35 '36 '37 '38 '39 '40 '41 '42 '43 '44 '45 '46 '47 1948 Fig. 13 — Concluded Twenty Years of Prices and Incomes 61 SEASONAL MOVEMENTS OF PRICES OF ILLINOIS FARM PRODUCTS, 1931-1941 Price fluctuations from month to month and from year to year are the results of changes in actual and anticipated supplies and changes in consumers' and dealers' ability and willingness to buy. But all farmers know that in the absence of any change in demand (ability and willingness to buy) the price of a crop is likely to be lower at harvest time than during any other season of the year, and prices of livestock and livestock products are likely to be lowest at the season of the year when marketings are heaviest. The prices tend to be lower as the result of the seasonally increased supplies. Producers are interested in seasonal price movements because of the possibility of regulating production and marketing in order to benefit most from such movements. They may find it profitable to avoid sales during periods of lowest seasonal prices, or they may decide that the rise in prices resulting from avoiding seasons of greatest sales by others may not pay for all the costs and worry involved in such a production and marketing program. If they do decide to try to avoid seasons of lowest prices, they may do it either by following a produc- tion pattern somewhat different from the average or by storing the product for sale later in the same season. Either procedure is likely to add to the final cost of the product to the farmer as it leaves the farm. The amount of the seasonal variation is related to the costs of storage, the quantity available for sale, and to changes in the opinions of buyers and sellers with regard to probable changes in demand. The costs of storage which must be considered include: (1) depreciation on the physical facilities used for storage; (2) any costs of putting the goods into storage and removing them later above the cost of marketing directly from the field; (3) deterioration of quality; (4) risk of loss by fire, rodents, or theft; (5) taxes; (6) insurance; and (7) in- terest on the investment. The possibility of a decline in prices as the result of a decline in demand or an increase in output of that com- modity or a competing commodity in any part of the world must be given consideration. Obviously some inducement must be offered the producer to assume the costs and risks involved in withholding part or all of his crop from the market or he would sell it all at harvest time. From the point of view of the consumer a service is being rendered by the storer for which the consumer is willing to pay. The goods are placed on the market at a time when he needs them. 62 Bulletin No. 542 Table 2. — Indexes of Seasonal Variation in Prices of Selected Illinois Farm Products, 1931-1941 a Index for each product Product Jan. Feb. Mar. Apr. May June July Aug. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec. Corn 98 97 98 102 107 107 109 107 104 88 89 94 Oats 107 108 108 108 107 102 94 86 92 90 97 102 Wheat 103 103 104 107 105 99 94 95 97 96 97 100 Soybeans 101 101 105 108 112 112 106 93 89 88 90 95 Barley 103 105 106 105 105 100 94 89 96 98 98 101 Alfalfa hay 105 105 105 104 105 96 90 92 94 97 101 105 Milk, wholesale 101 101 100 96 92 92 96 99 102 105 108 108 Butterfat 105 103 101 97 91 90 94 97 100 103 108 111 Chickens 97 99 102 106 104 102 106 103 102 94 93 92 Eggs 103 89 83 83 86 82 86 89 104 117 141 137 Hogs 96 98 98 96 94 98 109 110 112 102 95 92 Beef cattle 99 97 99 100 100 101 101 103 103 101 99 97 a Computed by the link-relative method using the arithmetic means of the three median link relatives. Basic data were from the Illinois Cooperative Crop Reporting Service. Prepared largely under the direction of E. J. Working. The indexes of seasonal variation in prices of important Illinois farm products in Table 2 and Fig. 14 are based on prices received by Illinois farmers during the prewar period, 1931-1941. The war years were not included because of the influence of various government controls on prices. The indexes represent the percentage that prices for a given month tended to be of the yearly average after the influences of major changes in demand and year-to-year changes in supply were eliminated. They represent general tendencies only. During the 1929- 1948 period changes in demand or large changes in year-to-year supply overshadowed the usual seasonal factors as price-making forces. Livestock and livestock products. The seasonal price movements of meat animals, poultry, and milk are influenced largely by the quan- tities ready for market. Storage on the farm is a minor item, although it is possible to hasten or defer marketings of livestock somewhat to avoid the season of greatest flow to market. Storage operations of packers of meat and poultry, processors of butter, cheese, and other manufactured dairy products, and dealers in eggs are substituted for farm storage of animal products. For all of these products the dura- tion of storage is limited by the perishability of the product. The livestock prices from which the seasonal indexes in Table 2 were calculated presumably represented the prices received for all hogs or all cattle sold by those reporting, regardless of the class or grade. The index of prices received for beef cattle is, therefore, a mix- ture of indexes of prices of different grades of cattle. Seasonal indexes of prices of beef steers, by grades at Chicago (Table 3 and Fig. 15), indicate the contrast in seasonal price movements of the best grades of Twenty Years of Prices and Incomes 63 J F M A M J J A S N C 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 105 100 > 95 90 85 OATS 1 F M A M J J A S N C 105 100 95 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 BEEF CATTLE 105 100 95 MILK J I L J I L J F M A M J J A S N C ~r 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 SOYBEANS no 105 100 95 90 1 F M A M J J A S N D 110 105 100 95 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 BUTTERFAT 1 1 1 - \_/^ Indexes of seasonal variation in prices of some Illinois farm products (averages of 1931-1941). (Fig. 14) 64 Bulletin No. 542 Table 3. — Indexes of Seasonal Variations in Prices of Beef Steers by Grade at Chicago, 1931-1941 a Index for each grade Grade Jan. Feb. Mar. Apr. May June July Aug. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec. Choice and Prime 105 100 103 101 93 92 95 98 102 102 102 105 Good 100 98 101 100 97 97 100 102 104 101 100 100 Medium 99 98 100 101 101 101 103 102 100 99 97 99 Common 100 101 106 107 107 103 100 97 95 93 94 96 * Contributed by W. J. Wills. butcher steers and lower grades represented largely by stockers and feeders. During the period 1931-1941 prices of Choice and Prime steers at Chicago averaged 13 percent above prices of Good steers. Medium- grade steer prices were 15 percent below prices of Good steers, and Common steer prices averaged 30 percent below. Field crops. Buyers, sellers, and feeders respond differently in years of large crops and small crops. The December to May rise in prices of corn tends to be more than average following the harvest of very large crops and less than average following the harvest of exceptionally small crops of corn. Increasing numbers of livestock also tend to PRICES OF BEEF STEERS CHICAGO, 1931-1941 CHOICE AND PRIME JAN. FEB. MAR. APR. MAY JUNE JULY AUG. SEPT. OCT. NOV. DEC. Indexes of seasonal variation in prices of beef steers by grade at Chicago (averages of 1931-1941). (Fig. 15) Twenty Years of Prices and Incomes 65 strengthen May corn prices relative to the previous December prices and decreasing numbers have the opposite effect. From July to De- cember corn-price movements are influenced to a considerable extent by new crop prospects. The seasonal movements of soybean prices appear to be changing. In the early 1930's the October price was very low relative to the season's average price and there was a steep rise until the top price of the season was reached about September. For the 1936-1941 period the extent of the seasonal spread was reduced and the peak of prices came earlier, in June or July. In 1947 and 1948 the peak in prices came about May or June, but a very large fraction of the seasonal rise had occurred by mid-January. If farm storage becomes more common, a part of the heavy discount taken by soybean sellers in October and November will disappear. SUMMARY The twenty years 1929 to 1948 covered a period in which farmers were subjected to extreme year-to-year changes in prices of the products they sold and in incomes. But on the whole Illinois farmers were more prosperous and in a better financial position at the end of the period than at the beginning. Prices of individual farm products rose and fell with personal in- comes in the United States — from a low of 63 percent of the 1910- 1914 average in 1932 to a high of 311 percent in 1948. The year-to- year changes in prices of farm products were caused very largely by changes in demand, except in 1934 and 1936 when drouths cut down the quantity of crops marketed. The prices farmers paid for com- modities, services, interest, and taxes varied in the same direction as the prices they received but the variation was not so great. During the twenty years soybeans increased greatly in importance as a source of farm income. Corn maintained its dominant position as a source of gross farm income. Hogs were the chief source of cash income; in the last few years of the period, during and following World War II, cash income from sales of hogs was a larger fraction of total income from sales than the average for the twenty years. Over the twenty years, income from sales of livestock and livestock products averaged 64 percent of total income from farm marketings, and income from crops averaged 36 percent. They varied little from these figures. 66 Bulletin No. 542 APPENDIX TABLES Table 4. — Indexes of Wholesale Prices of All Commodities, Farm Products, and Other Than Farm Products U. S., 1929-1948 a (1926 = 100) Year Index of all commodities Index of farm products Index of other than farm products 1929 95.3 1930 86.4 1931 73.0 1932 64.8 1933 .... 65.9 1934 74.9 1935 80.0 1936 80.8 1937 86.3 1938 78.6 1939 77.1 1940 78.6 1941 87.3 1942 98.8 1943 103.1 1944 104.0 1945 105.8 1946 121.1 1947 151.7 1948 165.1 104.9 93.3 88.3 85.9 64.8 74.6 48.2 68.3 51.4 69.0 65.3 76.9 78.8 80.2 80.9 80.7 86.4 86.2 68.5 80.6 65.3 79.5 67.7 80.8 82.4 88.3 105.9 97.0 122.6 98.7 123.3 99.6 128.2 100.8 148.9 114.9 181.0 145.5 188.3 159.8 * Source: U. S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics. Table 5. — Personal Income, Disposable Personal Income, and Income From Sales of Farm Products Plus Government Payments, U. S., 1929-1948 a Year Total personal income Disposable personal income Cash income from farm marketing 15 1929 85.1 1930 76.2 1931 64.8 1932 49.3 1933 46.6 1934 53.2 1935 59.9 1936 68.4 1937 74.0 1938 68.3 1939 72.6 1940 78.3 1941 95.3 1942 122.7 1943 150.3 1944 165.9 1945 171.9 1946 176.9 1947 193.5 1948 ,211.9 •illions of dollars) 82.5 11.3 73.7 9.0 63.0 6.4 47.8 4.7 45.2 5.4 51.6 6.8 58.0 7.7 66.1 8.7 71.1 9.2 65.5 8.2 70.2 8.7 75.7 9.1 92.0 11.7 116.2 16.0 131.6 20.0 145.6 21.0 149.4 22.3 159.2 25.3 173.6 30.5 190.8 30.8 a Source: Personal income and disposable personal income, U. S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of Foreign and Domestic Commerce; income from farm marketings, Bureau of Agricultural Economics, U. S. Department of Agriculture. b Includes government payments to farmers. Twenty Years of Prices and Incomes 67 C2 p. 00 — MNN -tfCCCOr- M-NOt Ol"tN00 OMNC* NMOHIfl NOOffiO lO^OC* CO Oi CO — 'CO CC C". l- — X fflNhKH HlsiONffl (0 05 0*0 T CO CO — CO CO CO — fO aNNNO -« -? i~ c - r^ oo c; oo t~ oo o co ■* m co o o o co co oo oo o t^Tffoo-* m t~ co r- co Ki'fcnffi re co oj t^ co oo — m o -«<* * c ci c -- co co to N t WrfH t^. uO 00 m 00 00 O C5 00 O m — co r^ oo © — co^cococo ccamom iocnosc oooo — co-*t< •^ao^Ht^oo hONCN HNMCC CO O CC Tf LO NOCON 0©COCO-f OCOOf^CO NOOOO CO CO m CO ^h **- CO CO co IC O CCOOCOCO ^ONffiN O-Ht^f^CN COOOt-OOO ^ <-> co co co co co m ■>* 'tfCO— '00CO MCO^M t^OKC. © 00 ^h CO >-i CO t^t^^cooo mooooo -rt CCC0OC0' a Noonh. 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Table 10. — Indexes of Prices Received by Illinois Farmers and Prices Paid by U. S. Farmers and the Ratio Between the Two, 1929-1948 (1910-1914 = 100) Year Index of prices re- ceived by Index of prices paid by U. S. farmers* Revised index of prices paid b Ratio of prices received (Illinois) to prices paid (U. S.) Illinois farmers Old formula Revised formula 151 165 159 140 124 119 128 128 127 132 126 123 124 131 149 160 168 171 191 230 248 160 151 130 112 109 120 124 124 131 124 123 124 132 152 170 182 189 207 240 259 92 82 (•>.') 51 55 67 90 94 102 81 77 81 97 107 117 111 113 121 129 125 94 130 86 91 70 63 56 65 60 86 72 115 93 119 96 . 134 102 102 82 95 77 101 81 127 96 160 105 187 110 187 103 194 103 . 231 112 . 297 124 . 311 120 1929. 1930. 1931. 1932. 1933. 1934. 1935. 1936. 1937. 1938. 1939. 1940. 1941. 1942. 1943. 1944. 1945. 1946. 1947. 1948. a Revised slightly. Source: Bureau of Agricultural Economics, Supplement Xo. 1, Agricultural Prices, January, 1950. b Prices paid by U. S. farmers for commodities, interest,- taxes, and wage rates. Wage rates were added to the older index and weights were changed. Source: Bureau of Agricultural Economics, Supple- ment No. 1, Agricultural Prices, January, 1950. Twenty Years of Prices and Incomes 71 M a 0-3 a 2 o -e S3 S=j O < a r-H »o co »h t- o re oo cc ■* os ■* o «o »o »o i-i eo t- CO — H> f CO J.-irHKN l> 00 O CO CO 00 00 (N OS 00 ■iO^CO'0 COC. -f ?! O^NCt- t» rf *■* t- i-< > CO OS CC CO 00 r-> — • CO O -OMCX DOOSCOOS -H oso^ejco I'iCCN* OS C — -NCO "tfiOCOt-00 ^j ce ce ce ce ce ce ce ce ce ce -f --?■ -r -?• -^- t*- -». --. _~ 0! OS OS OS OS OS OS OS OS OS OS OS OS ~ . OS OS OS OS OS o> eOt-«-"»005 lO OS O M X 0S00CMO00 OCOOSOOS x — -cm — wsHoat- -r >e — x -r ck:i:c o -r ; (N ^H r _ r _0 r-lr-lr-i. .00 OS CM OOCO'* OSOS«O00ifl ■ t eice'ers-r re -r x cc — ||H rt r-l — .— ei 0)0)0)01 CO < C-) 04 O) OS. 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