Tractor industry expects impressive growth in next few months as monsoon picks up

LUCKNOW: The effects of a weak monsoon this year is being felt by the tractor manufacturing industry whose fortunes are directly linked to the fate of crops in the field and farmers income levels. The tractor industry which grew by nearly 22 per cent during the last fiscal saw near flat sales growth during the last six months says head Marketing, Escorts Agri machinery, Shenu Agarwal.

The flat sales growth were a direct fall out of first a delayed entry of the monsoon and early estimates of a huge shortfall in rains this year, said Agarwal.

While the monsoon picked up during the last few weeks the sentiments had already affected farmers purchasing decisions.

"But now that the monsoon especially in the north has picked up we hopes sales to pick up rapidly after near six months of flat growth" said Shenu Agarwal.

He said that the tractor industry grew by about 11-12 per cent cumulative growth rate over the last five years but the last six months, though a temporary phenomenon, were the worse.

However, Uttar Pradesh did not show any signs of a sales slowdown of tractors even during the last six months of flat growth for the industry.

"UP which is the largest tractor market in India commanding nearly 16-17 per cent of total sales in the country saw sales growth being on the uptick even during the last six months when the industry was going through a slowdown" said Agarwal. Sales grew by about 8 per cent in UP during the last six months. He said that given the low tractor penetration in the state, nearly half of what Punjab has, they expect tractor sales to grow rapidly in UP over the next few years.