Since the start of 2017, farm equipment dealers’ level of optimism has varied by as much as 10-11% from one month to the next, according to the July 2017 issue of  Ag Equipment Intelligence. But compared to the same period last year, when their optimism level ranged from 31% “less optimistic” in January to 4% “less optimistic” in May, you could safely say that dealers are feeling better about the business prospects this year. This is interesting when you consider the charts below that plot average monthly tractor sales for the first 6 months of each year from 2013 to 2016.

The compact tractor segment has remained strong, with continuous growth since 2013.