Retail sales of construction and earthmoving equipment in March were almost double the levels seen in March 2020 just as the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic was just being felt. As a result, sales in the first quarter were 30 per cent above 2020 levels and reached over 8,000 units.
PCB Today reports that sales in the first quarter of 2021 had been expected to show a big increase on the previous year due to the pandemic, so it has been viewed with interest to see a comparison of sales with Q1 2019 to show the strength of the recovery into context.
It shows that sales in 2021 were 2.9 per cent above 2019 levels, and suggests significant momentum in the market during the early months of the year.
There are concerns that equipment sales could be held back in 2021 due to supply chain constraints for some components, but there is increased confidence that sales will continue to show a strong recovery for the full year.
Data has shown that the growth in sales is being driven by excavators, and mini/midi excavators (up to 10 tonnes) and other crawler excavators saw the strongest growth in comparison to Q1 2020.
The construction equipment statistics exchange covers sales on a regional basis in the UK and N Ireland. Sales in the South East were the strongest (39 per cent), while Wales saw the weakest sales in the first quarter, still 2 per cent below last years’ levels.
Sales in the Republic of Ireland are also recorded in the statistics scheme and saw a more modest increase in March compared with the UK. This resulted in Q1 sales this year ending up at 12 per cent above 2020 levels.
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