Escorts' tractor sales jump 21.1% in June on strong rural demand

Farm equipment and engineering major Escorts Ltd on Wednesday reported a 21.1 per cent year-on-year rise in its total tractor sales at 10,851 units in June.

The growth came on the back of robust demand from rural areas. The Faridabad-based manufacturer sold 8,960 units in the same month last year, it said in a regulatory filing.

Escorts logged a 23 per cent rise in its domestic tractor sales at 10,623 in June, against 8,648 units sold in the same month last year.

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Meanwhile, the company's exports during June fell 26.9 per cent at 228 units as against 312 units in the year-ago period.

"We have seen unprecedented demand this month. The industry is expected to grow significantly, backed by pent-up demand of the lockdown period, better farmer sentiment due to good monsoon prediction reflected in better than normal Kharif sowing, better rural cash flows owing to record crop output and crop prices, and reasonably good availability of retail finance," the company said in its statement.

The industry is witnessing widespread growth in almost all markets barring one or two, it added.

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"Our inventory levels, both with the company and with the channel, have been the lowest ever. After necessary permissions, we were able to run our factories in multiple shifts to achieve production at about 90 per cent of the capacity," Escorts said.

The supply chain situation, though better than before, continues to remain volatile, it added.