Farm and Garden Machinery Wholesalers NAICS 423820

Sep 6, 2025 - Ag Machinery Sales Struggle

• According to the July 2025 Ag Tractor and Combine report from the Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM), US combine and tractor sales fell in July compared to a year ago, highlighting ongoing challenges in the agricultural equipment market, particularly for larger machinery, as the broader farm economy continues to struggle. Combine sales remained especially weak – down 43.7% year over year in July – while total farm tractor sales fell 4.9% from 17,614 in July 2025 compared to 18,519 sold in July 2024, dragged down by steep declines in larger models. July sales for 2WD sub-40 horsepower (hp), 2WD 100-plus hp, and 4WD tractors all declined, while sales for 2WD 40–100 hp tractors inched up 0.8%. Year-to-date, AEM reports 120,354 total farm tractors were sold this year, down 9.9% from 133,541 over the same period in 2024.
• Electric control technologies can eradicate weeds just as effectively as herbicides or mechanical methods, Turf Magazine reports citing a recent article published in the journal Weed Science. Moreover, the study found killing weeds with electricity poses minimal risks to crops, soil, or the environment, despite displaying a potentially higher fire hazard risk if dry crop residues are present. The research, which was conducted at vineyards in Australia, used a tractor fitted with an Zasso™ XPower electric weed control machine that featured a rear-mounted XPower 36 kW power supply unit and an XPS applicator mounted on each side, with six electrode arrays per applicator, according to Turf Magazine. The study demonstrated that electric weed control has comparable efficiency to that achieved using herbicides and will be of particular importance in situations where herbicide resistance is increasingly problematic and for organic growers because there is no chemical residue

• Commercial farms account for the largest share of debt held by US farms despite representing the smallest share of farms by number, according to the USDA’s Economic Research Service. Since 1996, commercial farms’ share of all farm debt swelled from less than half of total sector debt to 69% in 2023. Their high debt share reflects their reliance on financing for capital-intensive activities, including investments in land and equipment. By comparison, the debt share for intermediate and residential farms fell from 1996 to 2023: from 18% to 13% for residential farms and 36% to 18% for intermediate farms, per the ERS. In 2024, farm debt at agricultural banks grew considerably and delinquency rates increased from historic lows amid weaker conditions in the agricultural economy that drove demand for production loans and led to slightly higher farm loan delinquency rates, per the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City.
• The producer price index for machinery and supply wholesalers, which measures prices before reaching consumers, rose 5.7% in July compared to a year ago after falling 1.3% in the previous July-versus-July annual comparison, according to the latest US Bureau of Labor Statistics data. Industry producer prices eased slightly in July from their high in May, which came despite sluggish demand and high interest rates that caused farmers to pull back on purchases. Employment by farm and garden machinery and equipment merchant wholesalers shrank 5.4% year over year in June, while the average industry wage rose 6.6% over the same period to a new high of $32.15 per hour, BLS data show.