GManBart
Elite Member
- Joined
- Dec 10, 2012
- Messages
- 4,976
- Location
- Detroit, Michigan
- Tractor
- Massey Ferguson 241, Kubota SVL90-2
I do not understand the huge price differences in the mark up. When all of the tractors are all imports. With pretty much the same cost to build and offer more standard features than the same big name tractor.
I don't understand all of it, for sure, but I think there have to be some pretty obvious differences.
It seems Deere is only importing a few of their machines now, and a few are made at their factories overseas, which sort of changes things for them.
Then you have tractors made in India, Japan, and Korea. Tractors made in Japan are going to have a higher cost to build since Japanese companies have much higher operating costs than the other two (higher wages, and much higher costs to own land/factories). For that reason, the Japanese tractors should cost more for the same machine.
I don't know about operating costs in India versus Korea, but I do think the Korean companies are pushing harder to gain market share, where Mahindra already has the most global sales. For that reason, I think the Korean companies are likely operating on smaller margins and keeping their prices lower, somewhat artificially, which is why their prices beat everybody else's.
This is also what Korean car companies have done...and it's no coincidence that LS is a spinoff of LG with roots in Hyundai. I remember when a friend who lived in another state told me he just bought a Hyundai. I said "what is a Hyundai?" I didn't even know it was a car brand, and I'm a car guy! Now they sell $75K cars....I think we're going to see that happen with the Korean tractor companies to some degree, where their prices go up on the top models to compete with all the other brands.