Farm equipment sales finished 2020 by exceeding the previous year’s figures across a variety of categories, according to new data from the Association of Equipment Manufacturers.
According to AEM’s Ag Tractor and Combine Report for December 2020, tractor sales for the year were up 17.7% over 2019 figures; combine sales observed a smaller increase, up 5.5%.
“The year 2020 was difficult on a number of fronts. Despite uncertainty in the overall economy, the ag equipment market has been pretty strong.” Curt Blades, AEM’s senior vice president of ag services, said in a statement. “The growth we saw in farm tractors and combines was pleasant news — driven largely by smaller equipment.”
Sales of two-wheel drive tractors were up 17.9%, with much of that growth coming from machines with less than 40 horsepower. Sales of four-wheel drive tractors showed a modest increase in 2020 — up about 3.7% — but actually dropped in the final month of the year — down 3.7% — when many producers are known to make large purchases after assessing their annual income.
Monthly sales figures throughout the year were higher in 2020 than the 2019 amounts and the five-year averages in almost every case; February and March were the only exceptions.
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