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Ritchie Bros. begins 2026 from a strong position in Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA region) with a series of developments designed to give heavy equipment owners greater flexibility, more sales options and better access to global demand.
This year is the time to achieve more with Ritchie Bros. After a solid close to 2025, the company begins the year with a busier auction calendar across the region and builds on the continued success of its oƯ-site auctions. Together, these developments reflect how the company is adapting its marketplace to closely match customer needs.
In the fourth quarter of 2025, Ritchie Bros. sold more than 20,200 industrial lots in EMEA, representing a year-on-year increase of 21%, supported by more than 15,200 bidders, up 15.5% from 2024. Market activity remained strong in the construction, agriculture and transportation sectors, underscoring both the depth of buyer demand and the scale of Ritchie Bros.' international marketplace.
In the construction sector, excavators and material handling equipment remained mainly in high demand, supported by broad cross-border buyer participation. Agricultural auctions saw particularly strong interest in tractors, with a 29.4% year-on-year increase in the number of bidders, while transport equipment, including light vehicles and trucks, continued to attract steady demand from professional buyers. Buyer participation remained generally very international, with Italy, France, Spain, Germany, the United Kingdom and the United Arab Emirates as the most active bidding countries. The Benelux auction in November again demonstrated the strength of Ritchie Bros' global marketplace, with a total of 2,864 lots attracting bidders from 66 countries, underscoring the broad international demand for high-quality used equipment. Handlers, excavators and transport equipment were among the most sought-after categories, reflecting continued activity in the construction and logistics sectors. A notable highlight of the auction was a 2008 Terex-Demag AC160-2 crane, which fetched a sales price of €255,000 and was purchased by a buyer from Romania.
Building on these achievements, Ritchie Bros. has revised its auction calendar for EMEA to provide a more consistent market presence throughout the year. Where customers previously saw about four or five auctions per region per year, they will now see six to seven auctions per region, with more buying and selling opportunities spread more evenly throughout each quarter rather than concentrated in short periods.
This approach shortens the time between auctions, allowing sellers to respond more quickly to fleet changes, while buyers have more regular access to equipment and a clearer picture of upcoming inventory.
“Demand no longer centers around a small number of annual auctions,” said Ghislaine Duijmelings, general manager of Ritchie Bros. International. “A more frequent calendar reflects how our customers operate today. It creates more timely and eƯective exit options for sellers, while buyers benefit from a more stable flow of machines and better insight into the future. It keeps the market active and responsive throughout the year.”
OƯ-site auctions are a proven solution for owners of larger fleets who want to sell their equipment directly from their own premises while taking advantage of Ritchie Bros.' international buyer network.
In 2025, Ritchie Bros. hosted five oƯ-site auctions in the United Kingdom and France, selling a total of 470 lots, including more than 250 in France and more than 210 in the United Kingdom. Buyer participation showed a strong mix of regional and international demand, with 79% regional buyers in France and 48% international buyers in the United Kingdom, reflecting the combined strength of local supply and global reach.
This approach is the best solution for some clients that best suits their business needs
“We needed something that was quick and easy. We didn't want to spend months answering requests or having individual negotiations on the machines. Ritchie Bros. made it all very simple for us.” - Mathieu & Laurianne Charpentier, owners farm in Brittany, France.
A key example in the first quarter of 2026 is the auction for British company Plantforce on Jan. 21, which shows how these customized events can combine operational simplicity for sellers with a strong buyer database. During this special auction, more than 280 used machines were sold to 740 bidders from 48 different countries, including the United Kingdom, Ireland, the United States, Spain and Poland.
Owners of equipment looking to sell in the first quarter of 2026 can contact the local Ritchie Bros. teams for a free valuation of their equipment and to discuss the most appropriate sale option. If you would like to sell your construction, transportation or agricultural equipment or explore the various sale options, visit: rbauction.co.uk/selling/sell-now.
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Founded in Canada in 1958, Ritchie Bros. is today the world's largest industrial auction house and service provider of heavy equipment and commercial vehicles. The company offers its customers a full range of services such as equipment buying and selling, tools to manage machine fleets, procurement of machine parts, data insights [....]
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