Agricultural machinery: the downturn in global demand negatively impacts Italian exports
Sharp decrease in 2024 for Italian exports of agricultural machinery which, with a value of EUR 6.8 billion, experienced a 15.1% decline compared to 2023. Made in Italy products are impacted by the downturn in global demand and trade restrictions. At the end of the year, all major markets were in decline with the exception of India, which reported a loss of just 2%, with more than 900,000 tractors sold. The uncertainty of US tariffs.
The decrease in economic activities and the low profitability of agriculture at the global level are reflected in the demand for agricultural machinery, which closed out 2024 with a total of 2,030,000 tractors registered worldwide, down 8% compared to the previous year. This confirms a negative trend that has seen total registrations go from almost 2.5 million units in 2021 to the current 2.03 million, for a loss of around 450,000 units in just four years. The overall value of tractors sold also decreased, coming in at USD 52 billion, or, 10% less than in 2023. The data relating to the trend of the world market released during FederUnacoma's annual general Assembly held this afternoon at Palazzo Albergati (Zola Predosa, Bologna), points to a decline for all major countries. In the United States, tractor sales decreased 14% compared to 2023, numbering 216,000 units, in China they dropped 12% with 320,000 registered machines, and in Turkey by 18% (63,000 machines). Western Europe reported an overall decrease of 8%, with 144,000 units registered, with a more limited decline in France (-6% with 34,000 tractors sold) and in Germany (-3% with 29,000 units). In this scenario the data relating to India stands out, which, despite showing a slowdown in registrations (-2%), does not differ substantially from 2023 values, coming in for the fourth consecutive year at above 900,000 registered units. “During 2023, market dynamics were influenced by economic variables, especially the slowdown in global growth and the low profitability of agriculture – said the President of FederUnacoma, Mariateresa Maschio – but also by ongoing geopolitical tensions”. The conflict in Ukraine, as well as that in the Middle East, have accentuated the volatility of industrial commodity prices and caused further disruptions in supply chains, which were already under pressure due to the Covid pandemic, contributing to the reduction of foreign trade flows. In 2024, the value of world trade in tractors was only EUR 23.8 billion (-21.7%), while that of other agricultural machinery fell by 8% to EUR 62 billion. The decrease in global trade also affected the performance of Italian exports, which fell 15.1% compared to 2023, with a total value of approximately EUR 6.8 billion (1.4 billion for the "tractors" entry, and 4.5 billion for the "agricultural machinery" entry. The remaining 840 million fall under the entry "incomplete tractors, and spare parts for tractors"). The trade balance of the sector remains positive at EUR 4.9 billion, but has continued to worsen in the current year due to tensions and restrictions in international trade. “Already in the first three months of this year, Italian exports to the USA have fallen to EUR 147 million, falling 36.8% – concluded the president of FederUnacoma – and causing the United States to slip from first to second place, after France, as the main export market for Italian machinery”.
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