After taking a hit, equipment rental expected to surge
The American Rental Association (ARA) is forecasting moderate growth for 2021.
For 2020, the ARA said there will be a 13% decline in U.S. equipment and event rental revenue compared to 2019 with revenue totaling $48.7 billion.
But the latest forecast calls for a 0.3% increase with 2021 rental revenue reaching $48.9 billion. Looking further ahead, the ARA expects growth of 9.2% in 2022, 6.8% in 2023, and 4.8% in 2024 while reaching $59.7 billion.
Construction and industrial rental revenue is forecast to finish 2020 with a significant hit in revenue, dropping 13.3% to $33.8 billion and a 3.3% decline is forecast for 2021 before double-digit growth of 11.2% arrives in 2022.
The general tool segment weathered the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic the best and is expected to finish 2020 down 5.2% to $12.7 billion and is expected to top its 2019 revenue peak by 2022.
“The forecast shows us how hard the coronavirus pandemic hit the equipment and event rental industry,” said John McClelland, ARA vice president for government affairs and chief economist.
“Hopefully 2021 will see us getting back some of the revenue losses we experienced in the equipment and general tool segments," McClelland said.
Investment in equipment is significantly down in 2020, with a 43% decrease to $8.166 billion. Equipment spending is forecast to rebound by 17.4% in 2021 and by 46.3% in 2022 to surpass annual investment of $14 billion.
Based in Moline, Ill., the ARA members include more than 11,000 rental businesses and more than 1,000 manufacturers and suppliers located in every U.S. state, all Canadian provinces, and more than 30 countries worldwide.