Agrievolution data shows that in 2017 more than 2.1 million new tractors moved around the world. This is a 13% increase over the previous year and an 11% increase over 2015. According to the world tractors market data: India and China alone accounted for more than a million units (a 16% gain), 220,000 were purchased on the U.S. market (up 4%) and 190,000 units were sold in Europe (a 13% gain). Sales in Korea fell by 16% to 8,933 units.

Agrievolution is a group made up of 15 ag equipment manufacturing associations and organizations that advocates for global agricultural mechanization and shares market information.

Whereas big double digit gains in strongly expanding markets are customary, such as in India and China which account for large numbers of tractor sales, the reported 13% increase in Europe is an “unusual result,” say Agrievolution officials.

Alessandro Malavolti, president of FederUnacoma, also called the Italian Agricultural Machinery Manufacturers Federation, said at a press conference earlier this summer that the unusually high gain in tractor sales in Europe is due mainly to the arrival of the ‘Mother’ Regulation. This regulation is a set of new machinery standards introduced this year by the European Union, which pushed manufacturers to offer special promotions at the end of 2017 for the sale and registration of their remaining stock before the regulation took effect. For instance, Italy saw a nearly 24% surge in registrations as a result.