In its November market trends report, Ritchie Bros. reported that over the past three years, the company has sold more than 15,000 forklifts in the U.S. for $99 million, including more than 1,500 sold for $10 million in Q3/20 alone.

“We’re at an interesting intersection with the used forklift market in the U.S.,” Doug Olive, Senior vice president of pricing and appraisals at Ritchie Bros., said. “When you look at rental companies, some of them ramped up their fleets — including forklifts — to keep up with growing demand in 2012 after the global recession. Now at seven to eight years old, those machines need to be replaced. But, this year with COVID, OEMs slowed or halted production altogether. Some were also impacted by disruptions in the supply chain. The increase in online shopping has also directly impacted the demand for forklifts. This juncture of supply and demand has contributed to recent stronger results in the used forklift market.”