Farm equipment dealers report that, on average in September, they saw year-over-year sales growth of 5%, which was down from 6% in August, according to Ag Equipment Intelligence’s October 2011 “Dealer Trends & Business Outlook” survey.

Other highlights from the survey included:

As the USDA’s World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimate’s report lower cash receipts outlook for 2011, dealers responded by lowering their projections for 2012 sales. They’re now calling for a 2% sale growth for the full year compared with 5% growth in the August survey.

While dealer optimist dropped slightly with the October survey vs. August, they remain positive about overall business trends. The Dealer Optimism Index is a measure of sentiment among dealers compared to the month prior. A net 8% of dealers report they have a more optimistic outlook vs. 15% last month — 25% more optimistic; 58% same; 17% less optimistic.