Last summer, the Equipment Dealers Association (EDA) and the Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM) teamed up to survey their members about the levels of new and used inventory currently on the market. In order to see how the inventory situation has developed, a similar survey was conducted in July 2017.
Compared to last year’s results, the EDA survey found equipment dealers’ perspectives on their new inventory has improved. In 2016, 62% of dealers felt their new inventory was too high versus 43% this year. Although less drastic, used inventories seem to be improving for dealers as well, with 36% reporting their used inventory levels to be “just right” versus 30% in 2016.
AEM’s survey found the majority of manufacturers feel both their new and used inventory levels are currently “just right” – 72% and 76% respectively – a significant improvement over last year. This year only 6% of manufacturers feel that new equipment inventories are too high in contrast to the 43% of equipment dealers who feel the same. Manufacturers and dealers perspectives also differ significantly when it comes to used equipment inventories. It must be noted that dealers have a more immediate standpoint and are likely considering inventories of multiple brands, whereas manufacturers are focused on their brand and may have a broader, longer-term perspective.
On the other hand, a short term analysis reveals a positive trend towards a reduction of inventory for both dealers and manufacturers. Over the last three months, the majority of dealers indicate a decrease in both new and used equipment inventories. The majority of manufacturers indicate that inventories at their facilities have remained stable over the past three months, with some indicating that their inventories are decreasing.
Source : Equipment Dealers Association