I seriously doubt it.
The 16 gross HP as Kubota states in thier catalog is the larger of net & gross HP used in the U.S. by major manufacturers. I recently downloaded a European Shibaura catalog that states power in KW, SAE HP & DIN HP. Maybe European salesmen just pick thier favorite unit of measure, or maybe some of them make-up thier own units of measure like the previously mentioned Kubota salesman.
I'm not even remotely trying to pick on Kubota, but "dummer than dirt" comes to mind when I think about this particular salesman. He could have been working anywhere, well hopefully not NASA.