Agricultural tractor sales are at a three-year low, with the number of machines logged in the last 12 months at just 11,231 while the total for the month of April was 1158 machines – down 10% on the 2023 figures.

Figures from the Agricultural Engineers Association also show that registrations for the first four months of 2023 are down 13% at 4049 tractors and it looks like sales could slip further if the trends across The Pond are anything to go by.

In North America, John Deere has not only cut back on the number of tractors being produced, it has also laid off some of its staff and there are more redundancies to come.

This action is being taken as the company reviews its outlook for the rest of the year, with sales now forecast to be down 15-25% depending on segment and region, on the back of reduced crop margins.

In the company’s latest earnings call, Cory J Reed, president of the Worldwide Agriculture and Turf Division; Production and Precision Ag, Americas and Australia, Deere and Co, said:

“This is probably best exemplified by our decision to under produce large tractor retail demand in North America in the back half of the year.

“We ended 2023 with really low levels of large tractor inventory, but we think it’s prudent to drive those levels even lower as we close out our 2024.

“The key here, is that by staying ahead of demand changes, we’re giving ourselves the optionality to react most efficiently to whichever way the market moves in the next year.”

According to various reports published in the United States, the lay-offs involve between 700 and 1000 staff at Waterloo, Des Moins and Illonois.