World tractor sales tipped to continue sales slide.

The world tractor sales market is expected to continue its decline in 2017, with only emerging countries tipped to pick up sales results.

A general crisis in commodity prices and declining farm incomes are some of the reasons behind a general fall in world agricultural machinery sales.

That is according to data released during EIMA 2016 which also indicates the trend is set to continue in 2017.

The tractor market heads toward the end of 2016 declining in almost all major countries.

Using data prepared by Agrievolution, the first nine months of the year saw a decline in sales in Europe (down 6 per cent), in China (-29pc), Brazil (-17pc), Russia (-19pc) and Japan (-24pc).

There are just a few countries running in positive sales territory including India (up 17pc - but off the back of a big decline in 2015), and Turkey (+7pc).

The US has experienced a slight increase up just 3pc although 70 kilowatt plus size tractors recorded a big slump in sales to fall 22pc.

The big numbers for tractor sales are in countries such as India which is expected to top 600,000 units, China 400,000 units and the United States 200,000.

Europe accounts for about 160,000 tractors each year.

An EIMA 2016 press conference was told the drop in sales is due to the reduction in farm incomes caused by excess production of key commodities and subsequent price collapse affecting farm investments.

Beginning in 2014, the trend is expected to continue into 2017 with estimates of excess world production in the cereal crop mainly in the United States, Australia, Canada, China and Kazakhstan and increases in rice, oilseeds and milk production.

The negative tractor sales trend is offset to a degree by positive trends in some new markets which follow on the recent emergence of India, China, Brazil, and Turkey - what EIMA organisers Feder Unacoma refer to as  a “new frontier of agricultural mechanization”.

Chairman of Feder Unacoma, Massimo Goldoni said in the six years from 2010 to 2015, tractor imports grew 400pc in Vietnam, 250pc in Ethiopia, and 240pc in Kenya.

Cuba in 2015 alone saw an increase of imports by more than 800pc.

The Philippines and Cambodia lead the way for growing imports of other agricultural equipment, up 190pc and 210pc respectively in the past six years, followed by Vietnam and Ethiopia (+128pc , and +117pc).\

 

 

Source:- www.queenslandcountrylife.com