摘要：Sales of farm machinery and equipment turned lower last year and have continued at an unexpectedly slow rate so far this year. Reports from the Equipment Manufacturers Institute (EMI) show that the number of new tractors and combines sold to U.S. farmers through August of this year was off 18 percent from last year's pace and 24 percent below the level reached during the first eight months of 1990. The declines have been especially apparent for large tractors and combines. The weak sales stem from several factors that outweigh the inducements of lower interest rates and expanded acreage.
