August tractor sales down 15.4% says Saama

The associations said that the harvesting of summer crops had now been completed.

"In the absence of early spring rains in the summer rainfall areas‚ soil conditions are not yet conducive to land preparation ahead of summer crop plantings later in the year. Most farmers in these areas are in an in-between season period with little activity on their lands‚" it said.

It said demand for agricultural machinery was still good but predictions are that sales will slow down in the short term as newer‚ higher-priced stock makes its way into the market. Nevertheless‚ activity should start picking up again as farmers begin to prepare for summer crop plantings.

Prospects for winter crops in the Western Cape currently look promising due to good rains in the area with flooding taking place in Cape Town in August.

Industry expectations are that tractor sales in the 2013 calendar year will be between 7‚000 and 7‚500 units‚ between 5% and 10% lower than in 2012.

In the first eight months tractor sales were down 5.5% y/y. Last year tractor sales rose by 7% to 7‚899 units.