ONLY ONE AREA OF UK SAW A SUBSTANTIAL RISE IN TRACTOR SALES

Last week, we published figures from the AEA on tractor registrations in June, which completed the statistics for the first half of 2022.

The number of agricultural tractors (over 50hp) registered during the period was 6,420, 6% fewer than in January to June 2021, although higher than the 5-year average.

Now the AEA have released analysis of the registrations by region and power.

Agricultural economist at the AEA, Stephen Howarth says, "The only part of the country to see a substantial rise in registrations was the Home Counties, which accounts for less than 5% of the national total but includes a high proportion of machines in the lowest power bands.

"The West Midlands and North West also recorded small rises but all other parts of the UK recorded registrations below the level seen in the first half of 2021. The fall was sharpest in the Eastern half of England, while Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland all saw similar year-on-year declines to the UK as a whole."

Looking at the breakdown by power range shows that the year-on-year decline in registations was concentrated in the 81-150hp and over 260hp ranges.

"Between these ranges," says Stephen Howarth, "there was a small increase in registrations, while there were also more tractors in the 51-80hp range this year.

"Given the widespread issues with supply chains, these trends may reflect availability of tractors as much as demand for them."