MILWAUKEE, Wis. (RFD News) — Farmers are holding back on big-ticket equipment purchases as sales continue to slow across the farm machinery sector.
U.S. tractor sales fell nearly 11% in July from a year ago, while combine sales dropped more than 5%.
Curt Blades, senior vice president with the Association of Equipment Manufacturers, said decisions to buy new equipment are being shaped by everything from commodity prices to interest rates and economic uncertainty.
“When you talk about the overarching ag economy, you can point to any number of things, whether it’s demand driven, whether it’s commodity prices, whether it’s input prices, whether it is loan interest rates or just general uncertainty of the global economy. Those are all factors that are leading to the ag economy being a little bit soft and also leading to those capital equipment purchases like equipment, to be a little bit soft as well.”
The slowdown is also affecting equipment dealers, with inventory moving more slowly and rural businesses feeling the pressure of less disposable income.
