US Tractor and Combine Sales Continue Improvement

According to the Association of Equipment Manufacturers, US sales of self-prop combines and tractors generally showed continued improvements year over year in November. The only category that showed weakness was sales of 4WD tractors, which came in at 107 units, down 21.9% from November 2016.

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​Self-prop combine sales gained 41.1% year over year to 199 units in November. Big-ticket items such as combines and 4WD tractors are heavily influenced by net farm income, which is finally showing signs of life after a few years of declining levels. Rolling twelve-month sales were down as much as 30% at the start of 2017 but have trended toward smaller declines to neutral growth in recent months.

​Smaller-ticket items, such as 2WD tractors (particularly those with less than 100 horsepower [HP]), are less reliant on the income level of farmers and generally have shown continued strength in sales. Sales of tractors with 40 to 100 HP increased 10.7% to 3,281 units in November, and sales of tractors with less 40 HP increased 9.5% to 7,078 units in November.