UK tractor registrations are taken as a broad indicator of the strength of the domestic market for agricultural equipment. Tractors must be licensed for use on public roads and as such are registered with the Department for Transport which allows an accurate count to be made. In value terms, sales of tractors, plus parts and accessories, account for almost one half of farmers’ total spend on equipment, which again makes this data series a prime indicator.
Agricultural Tractor Registrations (>50hp): Monthly 2019-2021
| Year | Month | Units | Yearly % Change | Year to date | Yearly % Change | Moving Total | Yearly % Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | Jan | 692 | -0.6 | 692 | -0.6 | 12009 | = |
| Feb | 518 | -10.5 | 1210 | -5.1 | 11948 | -0.2 | |
| Mar | 1840 | +11.7 | 3050 | +4.4 | 12141 | +2.4 | |
| Apr | 1744 | +47.3 | 4794 | +16.8 | 12701 | +6.1 | |
| May | 1008 | -16.2 | 5802 | +9.3 | 12506 | +2.8 | |
| Jun | 1100 | -7.0 | 6902 | +6.3 | 12423 | +0.9 | |
| Jul | 1548 | +16.5 | 8450 | +8.0 | 12642 | +0.7 | |
| Aug | 667 | -21.3 | 9117 | +5.2 | 12461 | -0.7 | |
| Sep | 1010 | +5.3 | 10127 | +5.2 | 12512 | -0.4 | |
| Oct | 771 | -7.3 | 10898 | +4.2 | 12451 | -0.9 | |
| Nov | 522 | -26.2 | 11420 | +2.3 | 12266 | -1.9 | |
| Dec | 620 | -26.7 | 12040 | +0.2 | 12040 | +0.2 | |
| 2020 | Jan | 501 | -27.6 | 501 | -27.6 | 11849 | -1.3 |
| Feb | 578 | +11.6 | 1079 | -10.8 | 11909 | -0.3 | |
| Mar | 1814 | -1.4 | 2893 | -5.1 | 11883 | -2.1 | |
| Apr | 908 | -47.9 | 3801 | -20.7 | 11047 | -13.0 | |
| May | 631 | -37.4 | 4432 | -23.6 | 10670 | -14.7 | |
| Jun | 1029 | -6.5 | 5461 | -20.9 | 10599 | -14.7 | |
| Jul | 952 | -38.5 | 6413 | -24.1 | 10003 | -20.9 | |
| Aug | 657 | -1.5 | 7070 | -22.5 | 9993 | -19.8 | |
| Sep | 1199 | +18.7 | 8269 | -18.3 | 10182 | -18.6 | |
| Oct | 685 | -11.2 | 8954 | -17.8 | 10096 | -18.9 | |
| Nov | 650 | +24.5 | 9604 | -15.9 | 10224 | -16.6 | |
| Dec | 776 | +25.2 | 10380 | -13.8 | 10380 | -13.8 | |
| 2021 | Jan | 580 | +15.8 | 580 | +15.8 | 10459 | -11.7 |
| Feb | 594 | +2.8 | 1174 | +8.8 | 10475 | -12.0 | |
| Mar | 2085 | +14.9 | 3259 | +12.7 | 10746 | -9.6 | |
| Apr | 1009 | +11.1 | 4268 | +12.3 | 10847 | -1.8 | |
| May | 1103 | +74.8 | 5371 | +21.2 | 11319 | +6.1 | |
| Jun | 1474 | +43.2 | 6845 | +25.3 | 11764 | +11.0 | |
| Jul | 1019 | +7.0 | 7864 | +22.6 | 11831 | +18.3 | |
| Aug | 829 | +26.2 | 8693 | +23.0 | 12003 | +20.1 | |
| Sep | 1159 | -3.3 | 9852 | +19.1 | 11963 | +17.5 | |
| Oct | 739 | +7.9 | 10591 | +18.3 | 12017 | +19.0 | |
| Nov | 543 | -16.5 | 11134 | +15.9 | 11910 | +16.5 | |
| Dec | 883 | +13.8 | 12017 | +15.8 | 12017 | +15.8 |
Please note that figures for all months in 2020 were revised in January 2021 following a reconciliation exercise carried out with DVLA.
Source: AEA Economics Department/DVLA
Agricultural Tractors: After the challenges of the first half of 2020, due to a combination of Covid-19 and adverse weather conditions, it was inevitable that agricultural tractor registrations would be higher in early 2021. However, year-on-year growth of 25% in the first half of the year meant that registrations were comfortably above the average of recent years. Growth slowed in the second half of the year, partly because the market had already recovered in the closing months of 2020 but also because of widespread disruptions to global supply chains. This affected tractor manufacturers as much as those making a range of other goods and led to lengthening lead times for delivery of machines. Without these disruptions, registrations would undoubtedly have been higher still.
History: Tractor registrations in 2021 were 16% higher than than in 2020 but very close to the size of the market in each of the three years before that. It is likely that registrations would have been higher still were it not for the disruptions to supply chains. That will have meant that some machines which would ordinarily have been delivered (and registered) in 2021 will have been delayed into 2022. The recovery in the number of machines registered meant that the total power of machines sold during the year also bounced back, although the average power was lower than in 2020.
Regional: At regional level, there were year-on-year increases in every part of the UK apart from Yorkshire, where registrations of agricultural tractors in 2021 were a handful lower than in 2020. Strongest growth was in the East Midlands and Northern Ireland, both of which registered over a third more machines last year. Most other regions saw increases of between 10% and 25%, compared with 2020.
Source: AEA Economics Department
| 2019 | 2020 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Company | Units | % of Total | Units | % of Total |
| John Deere | 3800 | 28.1 | 3157 | 26.5 |
| CNH of which: New Holland Case IH | 3518 2314 1204 | 26.0 17.1 8.9 | 3229 2129 1100 | 27.1 17.8 9.2 |
| AGCO of which: MF Fendt Valtra | 3335 1665 921 749 | 24.6 12.3 6.8 5.5 | 3133 1581 898 654 | 26.3 13.2 7.5 5.5 |
| Kubota | 887 | 6.5 | 784 | 6.6 |
| Claas | 778 | 5.7 | 449 | 3.8 |
| JCB | 278 | 2.1 | 187 | 1.6 |
| Same Deutz-Fahr | 243 | 1.8 | 208 | 1.7 |
| AgriArgo of which: McCormick Landini | 151 103 48 | 1.1 0.8 0.4 | 154 103 51 | 1.3 0.9 0.4 |
| Others | 555 | 4.1 | 634 | 5.3 |
| Total UK | 13545 | 100.0 | 11935 | 100.0 |
N.B. Data includes Compact Tractors (<= 50 hp) and Agricultural tractors (> 50 hp)
Data released after one year delay.
| 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Units | 10493 | 11928 | 12013 | 12040 | 10380 | 12017 |
| Annual % Change | +0.6 | +13.7 | +0.7 | +0.2 | -13.8 | +15.8 |
| Total horsepower (000′s) | 1666 | 1939 | 1991 | 1999 | 1775 | 1999 |
| Annual % Change | +1.6 | +16.4 | +2.7 | +0.4 | -11.2 | +12.6 |
| Average horsepower | 158.8 | 162.6 | 165.8 | 166.0 | 171.0 | 166.3 |
| Annual % Change | +1.0 | +2.4 | +2.0 | +0.1 | +3.0 | -2.7 |
