U.S. farm equipment exports down 14 per cent: AEM

Exports to Canada alone fell by 15 per cent

By Diego Flammini
Assistant Editor, North American Content
Farms.com

A new report by the Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM) suggests overall exports of American-made farm equipment fell by 14 per cent between January and September 2016.

There were, however, two areas that saw increases. According to the AEM report, equipment exports to Central America experienced a 16 per cent increase, totaling $978 million. Exports to Europe increased by four per cent, totaling $1.2 billion.

Among the regions that saw declines, exports to Canada fell by 15 per cent for a total of $1.5 billion; exports to Asia decreased by 44 per cent, totaling $440 million.

Some of the reasons for lower equipment exports include commodity prices and the strength of the American dollar compared to other currencies.

“The ag equipment industry continues to suffer from a global ag downturn in large part due to low commodity prices,” Benjamin Duyck, director of market intelligence, said in the Nov. 30 report. “While some countries might benefit from their higher commodity production levels, the U.S. manufacturers are watching from the sidelines as a strong dollar is making them less competitive in the global marketplace. Of course, the strong currency is a problem that plagues all U.S. exports.”

The top countries that bought the most U.S.-manufactured farm equipment during January and September 2016 were:

1. Canada - $1.5 billion
2. Mexico - $873 million
3. Australia - $353 million
4. Germany - $185 million
5. China - $156 million
6. France - $128 million
7. Ukraine - $123 million
8. Brazil - $115 million
9. South Africa - $91 million
10. United Kingdom - $89 million