News: Agricultural

2022-02-20

DATAPOINT: 2022 North America Production Estimate, Harvesters 460 Units

460 units is the estimate by Power Systems Research of the number of agricultural harvesters to be produced in the U.S. during 2022.

This information comes from industry interviews and from two proprietary databases maintained by Power Systems Research: EnginLink™ , which provides information on engines, and OE Link™, a database of equipment manufacturers.

Market Share:  With 48.5% of total units produced, Deere leads in production of Harvesters in the U.S.  In second position is Oxbo International’s combined plant totals of 24%; third, is Flory with 10.5%. 

Exports: Collectively, up to 1% worldwide.

Trends: In 2021, production of Harvesters in NA increased 13%.  Production is expected to gain another 3% in 2022.  The Ag industry has fluctuated in recent years and demand for new products declined a few years ago due to falling commodity prices.  Farmers couldn’t afford new equipment and spent years refurbishing existing units.

Currently, it appears that growers are moving from hand to machine harvesting.  They are increasingly using over-the-row mechanical harvesters to pick produce and like commodities.  Especially during COVID times, this type of machinery reduces the need for manual labor during labor shortages.  The increase in harvester production is also attributed to the desire for new machinery that increases productivity and profitability. 

Expect production to fluctuate over the next 3-5 years with an increase of 5% by 2025.   PSR

Carol Turner is Senior Analyst, Global Operations, at Power Systems Research

2022-01-22

Bad Weather in Brazil Jeopardizes Ag Machines Market

BRAZIL/SOUTH AMERICA REPORT  
Fabio Ferraresi
Fabio Ferraresi

During the last week of 2021 and the first week of 2022, grain crops faced unfavorable weather conditions. At Mato Grosso and Paraná Regions the lack of rain has been the big problem, while in states like Tocantins and Bahia the problem is an excess of rain, influenced by the climatic phenomenon called La Niña. In some states , such as Paraná, the harvest forecasts are 40% lower than the initial forecast and the losses are estimated at US$ 5 Billion in Paraná.

Source: Valor Economico          Read The Article

PSR Analysis: The loss in Agribusiness affects farm cash flow directly and farmer’s ability to invest in Ag Equipment. Moreover, the mood of farmers could be negatively impacted in a year with new waves of COVID 19 and with political instability due to elections. Ag equipment forecasting in 2022 may be challenging and sales results may surprise OEMs, many who expect double digit growth. PSR

Fabio Ferraresi is Director, Business Development South America, for Power Systems Research

Global: Recovery Is Strong, but Uneven

GLOBAL REPORT
Yosyf Sheremeta
Yosyf Sheremeta

SUMMARY.  The global economy performed very well in 2021 and continues to recover, along with trade, employment and incomes. But the revival is unbalanced, with regions/countries, businesses and people facing very different economic realities. Recent improvements also conceal structural changes, which means that some sectors, jobs, and technologies will not return to their pre-pandemic trends. Based on the most recent economic developments and trends, Power Systems Research remains somewhat optimistic about the global recovery.

Many of us hoped to be in the post-Covid phase by now, but it is evident that there is no quick way out.  The pandemic has had a profound impact on the world economy, and it will continue to challenge established norms of life and business into the foreseeable future.  As we start the new year, many challenges remain, new and old alike: re-surgency of COVID variants, restrictions on travel, supply chain challenges, shortages of materials/goods, inflation, and employment, as well as renewed geopolitical tensions across many parts of the globe.

Power Systems Research witnessed a strong economic recovery globally in 2021, despite regional differences.  Output in most OECD countries has now either surpassed or is about to reach pre-pandemic levels, but lower-income economies, particularly those where vaccination rates are low, are at risk of being left behind.  Furthermore, the rebound will continue to vary widely among different market segments.  

Global inflation re-surfaced in 2021 and presents a real risk to economic recovery in all regions. The renewed inflationary pressure risks lasting longer than was expected a few months ago.  The surge in retail and wholesale energy costs in late 2021 will undermine economic growth prospects for large parts of Europe and Northeast Asia well into 2022.  Rising food and energy prices already have impact on low-income households in particular. 

Read More»

2021-12-19

JCB To Expand Production Capacity in Brazil

JCB plans to invest R$ 120 million (US$ 20 million) in its factory located in Sorocaba, State of São Paulo, with the objective of increasing annual production capacity from 4,000 to 10,000 units by 2026. JCB expects to grow 50% in sales volume this year, compared to last year’s results, and more than double the sales.

Source: Valor Economico      Read The Article

PSR Analysis: With the increased production volume from new products made in Brazil, such as Wheel Loaders, JCB should be above 80% capacity. With the market growth forecast for Brazil, it will be necessary for JCB to increase production capacity. The scenario is slightly different for other players who have higher capacity in their plants in Brazil. PSR

Fabio Ferraresi is Director, Business Development South America, for Power Systems Research

2021-11-21

Global Economy On the Path To Economic Recovery, Despite Increased Uncertainty

Yosyf Sheremeta
Yosyf Sheremeta

The global economy is on a healthy rebound trend, but issues with supply chain, logistics and the re-surgency of COVID-19 during Q3 2021 remained.  Power Systems Research witnessed a strong economic recovery globally in H1 2021; however, many challenges still remain.  The rebound will continue to vary widely among different regions/countries, but a complete recovery is not expected until the global pandemic is under control.   With some minor changes among regions and market segments globally, our overall forecast from last quarter remains in place, and that is good news to our industry players, OEMs, powertrain, and component suppliers.

The global economic performance last quarter was in line with our initial projections from earlier this year.  As we projected last quarter, we did not expect any rapid economic recovery in H2 2021, however, we continued to witness a steady increase in economic activities.  During the last quarter of 2021 Power Systems Research expects this trend to remain in place.

Government support in the form of fiscal policies and public health management are driving the economic rebound and largely explain variations in performance across countries. With the targeted monetary support to consumers and certain industries, the demand for products and services globally is coming back, and we expect this trend to carry over into Q1 2022.

Read More»

2021-11-09

DATAPOINT: 2021 NA Production of Tractors

101,500 units is the estimate by Power Systems Research of the number of tractors to be produced in North America  during 2021. In this report, we consider North America to include Canada, Mexico and the United States.

This information comes from industry interviews and from two proprietary databases maintained by Power Systems Research: EnginLink™ , which provides information on engines, and OE Link™, a database of equipment manufacturers.

Market Share: With combined plant totals of 75% Deere leads in production of AG tractors in North America with about 63,200 units. In second position is Kubota (8,000 units) with 9.5%. Third is Case with about 8%.

Worldwide Distribution: Canada exports about 75% of its North American Ag Tractor production, Mexico, about 60%, and the United States, up to 45% of its total production.

Trends: In 2020, production of Ag tractors in North America decreased nearly 24% to only 84,600 units.  Production is expected to rebound 20% in 2021 to more than 101,500 units.  COVID-19 related factors played a role in the decline last year, especially for parts availability and equipment inventory levels. Expect production to increase 10% by 2025.      PSR

Carol Turner is Senior Analyst, Global Operations, for Power Systems Research

2021-10-26

DATAPOINT: 2021 North America Combines

Today Joe Delmont presents the 2021 forecast for Combine production in North America. This forecast has been developed by Carol Turner, Senior Analyst of Global Operations at Power Systems Research. Carol provides annual production forecasts for important equipment applications.

Transcript

Welcome to the PSR PowerTALK podcast produced by Power Systems Research.

00:06

From Power Systems Research, I’m Joe Delmont, editor of PSR PowerTALK.

Today we’ll discuss a data point covering 2021 North American production of combines. When we talk about North America in this podcast, we mean the United States only.

Read More»

2021-09-26

Jacto Announces Hybrid Self-Propelled Planter

Jacto has entered the planter segment with three products, Uniport 500, Lumina 400 and Meridia 200. Uniport is the first hybrid self-propelled planter in Brazil. It has a Diesel ICE working as an electric power generator and independent electric drives in the four wheels of the equipment. This design promises less fuel consumption, because of a better traction system and uniform planting speed, and consequent better uptime since it reduces stops for refueling.

Source: Press Release / SAE Brazil Mobility Forum   Read the Article

Read More»

Rostselmash Increases Investment Program More Than 40%

Rostselmash, the largest Russian AG machine maker, during the period into 2024 will increase investments for production development from US$ 275 million to US$ 390 million (19.9 billion Rubles to 28.5 billion Rubles, respectively).

Initially, the transmission plant was scheduled to make 90,000 gear units per year, but as soon as the plan of tractor production was corrected, planned output of the transmission plant was increased to 150,000 gear units per year. Also, three new painting lines were added.

In the beginning of September Rostselmash started building a new plant in Rostov-Don. It will make tractors, road construction and communal machines. The new plant will make 5,000 machines per year.

Read The Article

PSR Analysis: With the increased harvest in Russia, increased prices for grain and the remaining State support program, Rostselmash has increased resources for a larger investment program. However, another reason for increasing investment is the growing inflation, which requires additional spending.    PSR

Maxim Sakov is Market Consultant – Russia Operations for Power Systems Research

2021-08-24

Sales of Agriculture Machines in Russian Increase 50%

The Russian market for AG machines has increased by 1.5 times during the first six months of this year, reaching 93.9 billion rubles (US$ 1.27 billion). Production volume has increased by 45% to 112.7 billion rubles (US$ 1.54 billion).

The largest growth has been in the output of plows, climbing to 1,800 units and AG tractors – by 43% to 2,800 units. Production of sprayers has increased by 37.3% to 953 units. There has been a modest gain in production of grain combines, increasing 10.2% to 3,800 units, and self-propelled mowers, gaining 2.6% to 228 units.

Read More»