Horsepower is galloping up in tractor stakes

4 February 2000




Horsepower is galloping up in tractor stakes

By Andy Collings

TOTAL tractor horsepower sold into the UK agricultural market last year was 1,279,000, 22% more than in 1998, reports the Agricultural Engineers Association.

The figure also reflects a 6.7% rise in the average size of tractors, which is now 116.6hp.

Actual numbers of tractors registered also rose to total 10,969 units, a welcome 14.4% up on 1998. But compact tractor sales did not fare nearly as well and, with 652 registrations, recorded a fall of 28.8%.

Regionally, tractor sales in the north and Wales were the poorest, with falls of 5.4% and 0.7%, respectively. Clouding common belief that it was just the large arable areas buying the most tractors last year, the highest rise in sales was in Scotland at an impressive +29.2%.

Horsepower analysis


Jan-Dec 1998 Jan-Dec 1999 % change

HP range Units % of total Units % of total

0-40 916 8.7 652 5.6 -28.8

41-60 262 2.5 238 2.0 -9.2

61-70 532 5.1 321 2.8 -39.7

71-80 684 6.5 752 6.5 9.9

81-90 1,393 13.3 1,294 11.1 -7.1

91-100 2,299 21.9 2,438 21.0 6.0

101-120 1,579 15.0 1,948 16.8 23.4

121-140 1,786 17.0 2,340 20.1 31.0

141+ 1,040 9.9 1,638 14.1 57.5

Unknown 11 0.1 0 0


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