New farm equipment sales in Canada declined again in January, according to the latest monthly sales numbers from the Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM.)
4-wheel drive tractor sales were down sharply from January 2019, falling from 69 to 11 units — an 84 percent drop.
Overall 2-wheel drive tractor sales were only down 2.8 percent, but that was largely supported by sales of small, under-40-horsepower tractors, as the number of new 100-plus horsepower machines that were moved fell by 28.8 percent versus last year.
New combine sales were down 22 percent, from 59 to 46 in the month of January.
Canada January 2019 sales (courtesy AEM)
U.S. sales were more mixed, with strong sales of larger 2-wheel drive machines.
“The sales numbers we are seeing for January 2020 are in line with our expectations,” says Curt Blades, senior vice president of ag services for AEM. “With the approval of the USMCA and the announcement of the Phase One trade agreement between the U.S. and China, we believe we are seeing some positive trends on the horizon for ag equipment sales.”
Total U.S. sales of 2-wheel-drive machines was up in January a total of 4.9 percent compared to January 2019: under 40 HP 2-wheel-drive tractors were up 2.6 percent, and sales of 40-100 HP tractors went up 4.6 percent, while sales of 100-plus HP tractors led the way with 19.6 percent growth to 1,361 units. Total November U.S. 4-wheel drive tractor sales fell 6.6 percent to 169 units sold. Combine sales declined by 24.4 percent.
U.S. January 2019 sales (courtesy AEM)
Related: U.S. tractor sales tick up slightly to close out 2019; not so in Canada
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