The May 2025 new tractor market at 249 units was 55% higher compared with the same month in 2024, while the year-to-date 2025 new tractor registration moving total figure is 4% higher at 1,274 units compared with 1,230 for the first five months of 2024, according to the latest Farm Tractor and Machinery Trade Association (FTMTA) Statistics Service report. This impressive market result comes against the background of a combination of pent-up demand and delivery delays from some brands since the start of the year, which resulted in strong registration figures as the grass silage harvest period began.
Ireland’s largest farming county of Cork continued to deliver the highest number of new tractor registrations at 202 units for the year-to-date, while Tipperary was ranked in second place with 124 units followed by Galway, at 70 units.
The most popular power band was the 161hp to 200hp category, which for May 2025 accounted for 26.9% of all new tractor registrations for the month. Tractors in the power band lower than 100hp accounted for just 8.24% of all new tractor registrations so far in 2025.
The over 200hp category accounted for 12.1% of all new tractors for the year-to-date. The monthly average tractor horsepower figure for May 2025 was 152hp which is a marginal drop from 153hp in May 2025, and the largest tractor registered was rated at 370hp.
The FTMTA data showed that 275 imported used tractors were first-time registered in Ireland in May 2025, 73 more units than in May 2024, while the year-to-date used tractor registration figure at 1,259 units was 22 units more than was registered for the first five months of 2024.
Telescopic Loaders decline in registrations
The Irish market for new telescopic loaders reported a 2% decline in May 2025 at 38 units, compared with May 2024. The latest FTMTA data showed new telescopic registrations for the year-to-date increased by 13.2% to 419 units compared with the same five months of 2024 when 370 units were registered. The two leading brands Manitou and JCB accounted for 75% of the total market, while Kramer market share has dipped to almost 9%. There were 42 imported used telescopic loaders registered in May 2025 marginally up from 37 in May 2024.
Wheeled Loaders
The Irish wheeled loader market recorded a reduced number of new registrations in May 2025 at 16 units compared with May 2024 at 19 units, which was a market decrease of 18%. Three traditional brands, JCB, Komatsu and Volvo made a resurgence and now accounted for 46% of all new wheeled loader registrations so far in 2025. There were just 8 imported used wheeled loaders registered in May 2025 compared with one in May 2024.
Backhoe Loaders
The Irish backhoe loader market decreased in May 2025 compared with May 2024 with just 3 new machines registered, which converts to a 25% decrease. There were 6 used backhoe loaders registered in May 2025 in Ireland. For the period from January to May 2025 there were 27 new backhoe loaders registered in Ireland compared with 32 in the first five months of 2024.
