International and local bidders compete for 1,800 equipment items in Toronto
public auction

Ontario buyers purchase 75 percent of equipment; good indication local economy is picking up

TORONTO, March 8 /CNW/ - Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers (NYSE andTSX: RBA), the world's largest industrial auctioneer, conducted a multi-million dollar unreserved public auction at its permanent auction site in Toronto (Bolton) on Wednesday, March 3, 2010, selling more than 1,800 equipment items at the one-day auction. More than 2,700 on-site and online bidders participated from 30 countries, including 34 US states and all 10 Canadian provinces.

"The outcome of our first Toronto auction of the year was very positive," said Brian Dykstra, Regional Manager, Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers. "We had over 4,700 people in attendance on auction day. We've not seen the site this full and action-packed for a long time. The large assortment of late model equipment and trucks in the auction attracted a very active and competitive bidding crowd and pricing remained strong throughout the entire sale. What was even more surprising was the high level of local bidder and buyer participation. It's a good sign that things are starting to pick up in the Ontario economy."

Approximately 80 percent of registered bidders came from Ontario; Ontario buyers also purchased 75 percent of equipment sold in the auction. Out-of-country buyers participated from as far away as Mexico, Colombia, Peru, Trinidad & Tobago, Jamaica, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

Ritchie Bros. has over 110 unreserved industrial and agricultural auctions on its upcoming auction calendar at www.rbauction.com. Upcoming auctions in Ontario include a two-day unreserved industrial auction at the Toronto (Bolton) site on May 11 and 12, 2010, and agricultural auctions in Goderich on Tuesday, March 23, London on Thursday, March 25, and Alliston on Friday, March 26, 2010.

About Ritchie Bros.

Established in 1958, Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers (NYSE andTSX: RBA) is the world's largest industrial auctioneer, selling more equipment to on-site and online bidders than any other company in the world. The Company has over 110 locations in more than 25 countries, including 40 auction sites worldwide. Ritchie Bros. sells, through unreserved public auctions, a broad range of used and unused industrial assets, including equipment, trucks and other assets utilized in the construction, transportation, agricultural, material handling, mining, forestry, petroleum and marine industries. The Company maintains a web site at www.rbauction.com and sponsors an equipment wiki at www.RitchieWiki.com.

For further information: Kim Schulz, Manager, Corporate Communications, Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers, Phone: [phone] or email [email protected]; Or Brian Dykstra, Regional Manager, Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers, Toronto (Bolton) auction site, tel: [phone]