Farm Equipment Sales on the Rise

Makers of big iron have reason to smile, according to the latest numbers from a university survey. RMI, the Rural Mainstreet Index is an index to gauge the pulse of the rural economy by focusing on 11 regional states with 200 rural communities with an average population of 1,300 people. It was created by Creighton University economist Ernie Goss. The RMI ranges from 0 to 100 with 50.0 considered growth neutral. Based on that, the April report, which is released in May, showed the overall index at 44.2, down from 47.4 in March However, the index is considerably higher than in April 2009 when the index was pegged at 21.7. The RMI also includes a farm equipment sales index, which for April sat at 57.2. This was a large jump from March’s 41.4 and February’s 42.4. Goss said in the report that significant improvements have been seen in farm equipment sales and he expects this sector to remain healthy “ in the months ahead”. Farmers have been willing to trade tractors earlier than normal to get the last of the Tier III tractors. Tier IV tractors are set to come out in 2011 and will feature emission solutions that are more complex than the Tier III tractors.