A solid trade was seen at the last Hennessy Auctioneers monthly machinery auction at Portlaoise Mart. John Hennessy said there was a lower turnout of buyers than usual.

He put this down to the good weather and farmers trying to get the last of the first-cut silage complete. It didn’t seem to hamper the trade, with a 81% clearance of 620 lots. John noted that the trade for fresh secondhand machinery at the auctions over the past two years has been very strong, especially for clean 10-20-year-old 4WD tractors selling in the €15,000 to €30,000 price bracket, but he fears a recent strengthening of the euro against sterling may affect this, with farmers and dealers going to the UK to buy machinery.

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