Wandile Sihlobo says he is not optimistic about near-term agricultural machinery sales - however, the agricultural output promises to be a good harvest, and the sentiment in the sector is generally positive.
Higher agricultural output gains in 2020, coupled with relatively higher commodity prices, improved South African farmers' finances. The allied industries benefitted from this windfall.
A case in point is South Africa's agricultural machinery market, which registered a notable improvement from the previous year. Tractor sales amounted to 5 738 units, up by 9% from 2019, with combine harvester sales up by 23% from the same year, amounting to 184 units. These sales are nearly as high as in 2018, which was also supported by higher grains output in the 2016/17 production season.
