U.S. farm tractor sales were down 13.2% in 2024 from the previous year and combine sales were down 24.3%, according to the Association of Equipment Manufacturers.

Tractor dealers at the Northwest Ag Show in Salem, Ore., said sales were soft in the Pacific Northwest, too.

Brad Sims, PNW Machinery territory sales manager, said this was the slowest December local dealership workers can remember.

“Ag in general is in a slump,” he added.

Dustin Grell, Holt Ag Solutions territory account manager, said prices for many commodities such as grass seed and milk were down and interest rates also had an impact, though those were now dropping.

Uncertainty, farmer sentiment

Curt Blades, senior vice president of agriculture, said demand already had been met in certain categories, interest rates were high and there was uncertainty about geopolitical developments and the lack of a farm bill.

Blades said that while a new farm bill wouldn’t drive demand, “Non-passage creates uncertainty, and uncertainty limits the sales of machines.”

Buying a major piece of equipment isn’t just for next year, but for the next five growing seasons. Farmer sentiment plays a heavy role in making such a decision, Blades said.

Grell said wallets get tight during presidential election years as farmers wait to see who wins and how that could impact policy.

Sims said farmers are feeling better with the new year and the new presidential administration.

‘COVID hangover’

The small tractor market, which is more of a consumer product, has been soft for the past three years after a period of record sales during the pandemic, Blades said.

“Folks were spending money on tractors rather than trips to Europe,” he added.

Brad Wilcox, Kubota regional sales manager, called the situation a “COVID hangover.”

“People overbought during COVID,” he said, adding that they stayed at home and worked on their properties.

The same nesting effect happened when people were afraid to travel after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.

The large tractor and combine segments also had already met demand in recent years, Blades said.

Combine sales, for example, were high in 2023 due to technological advancements.

There’s also a glut of late model used machinery in high-end tractors and combines, Blades said.

Outlook for 2025

Blades remained optimistic about 2025, thanks to new features including more automation and fuel efficiency.

Sims said new overtime rules are pushing ag operators to invest in machinery and technology that will save them time and money.

“It may not be tractors. We’re trying to capitalize on some of the other products we do,” he added.

Wilcox said Kubota’s forecast was for flat or slightly lower sales to start 2025, with things picking up in the second half of the year.

AEM sales data

AEM data show 217,200 tractors and 5,564 combines sold in 2024.

Small tractors had 134,911 sales, down 14% from 2023; medium tractors between 40 and 100 horsepower had 55,067 sales, down 9.9%; and large tractors dropped 17.5% with 22,864 units sold.

The most expensive segment of tractors, four-wheel drive farm tractors, had 4,358 sales, down 4.5%.

Blades said buyers in the market for that size of tractor were using a long-term business strategy and less impacted by other factors.

AEM data shows 5,564 self-propelled combines were sold in 2024.