Following an 18% growth last year, to €80 billion ($112 billion), Dr. Bernd Scherer, managing director of VDMA, the German Agricultural Machinery Assn., estimates global production of agricultural machinery and tractors for 2012 will reach €86 billion, or an equivalent of about $120 billion. 

According to the association, sales were approximately 25% higher than the average for the preceding five years. VDMA attributes the upswing largely to two factors. The first is a considerable increase…