Regulators Investigate Potential Anticompetitive Conduct in Agricultural Equipment Markets
By Elias Schisgall
The Federal Trade Commission and U.S. Department of Agriculture have launched a probe into potential anticompetitive practices in the agricultural equipment markets, sending shares for farming machine makers lower.
The regulators on Wednesday said they opened a joint public inquiry seeking information into the manufacturing and distribution markets for agricultural equipment amid a growing number of complaints to the USDA.
They invited comments from the public, saying farmers across the country are facing barriers to acquiring agricultural equipment and the services required to keep the equipment operating.
Shares of major agricultural equipment companies traded lower on Wednesday. Shares of Caterpillar fell 5.9%, CNH Industrial shares shed 5.3%, and Agco shares fell 5.7%. Deere shares were down 2.8%.
The FTC said the inquiry is part of its broader project addressing competition in agriculture, citing recent settlements with Deere and Corteva.
The two agencies said public comments could include information about business models and practices, experiences or documented cases of restrictions or retaliation in the sector, and "broader competitive implications."
Write to Elias Schisgall at elias.schisgall@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
October 07, 2026 13:12 ET (17:12 GMT)
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