US tariffs erode rural income optimism, finds Nabard

Just months after a survey showed nearly three-fourths of rural households expected incomes to increase, a newsstudy by the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (Nabard) finds sentiment weakening, as US President Donald Trump’s steep tariffs on India have cast a shadow over the rural economy.

- HARSH KUMAR & SANJEEB MUKHERJEE

Nabard’s bimonthly rural economic conditions and sentiment survey for September 2025 highlights how tariff-related risks for farm and non-farm exports — and their knock-on effects on rural incomes and employment — have dented confidence among rural households.

“Forthe next one-year income prospects, a lesser percentage of households reported expectation ofan increase in income,” the survey found.

In July, almost 75 per cent of rural households expected higher incomes over the next 12 months. That figure has eased to 72.8 per cent in September. Short-term optimism also slipped, with 51.6 per cent of households expecting an improvement in the next quarter, down from 56.4 percentin July.