Northeast Radio SD News – Watertown, SD - While regional manufacturing across nine Mid-America states expanded for an eighth consecutive month, the agricultural and rural banking economy across the 10-state Rural Mainstreet region slipped below growth neutral for the fourth time in the past six months, according to the October 2026 Economic Trends report released Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2026, by Creighton University economist Dr. Ernie Goss.

Northeast Radio SD News – South Dakota - Recent survey data from the Mid-America region indicates the economy is navigating significant financial pressures, particularly in the agricultural sector. The Rural Mainstreet Index (RMI), which tracks the farm-dependent economy across a 10-state region, fell to its lowest level since May 2020 in October 2025. This contraction is fueled by farmland prices sinking below growth-neutral levels and a multi-year decline in farm equipment