Class 8 Truck Orders Inch Up in September
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North American Class 8 truck orders ended three months of year-over-year declines with a slight rise in September, according to ACT Research.
Preliminary data showed orders inched up 0.3% to 37,100 units and doubled the total orders for August. Class 8 orders increased 92% on a seasonally adjusted basis to 35,200 units from the previous month.
“Class 8 orders jumped well above trend and seasonally elevated expectations in September,” said Kenny Vieth, president and senior analyst at ACT. “Historically, September is the first month of stronger orders as the OEMs open their order books to next year’s orders. As such, for the first time since March, seasonality lowers the monthly order volume.”
FTR Transportation Intelligence reported that Class 8 preliminary net orders for September increased 4% year over year to 30,000 units. This also marked a sequential jump of 107%, and the report noted that the figure falls in line with seasonal expectations. It also concluded that the balanced order number suggests an initially healthy level of demand for new trucks next year.
Vieth
“This month, OEMs saw positive market demand, though the magnitude of the [month-to-month] increases varied,” said Dan Moyer, senior analyst of commercial vehicles at FTR. “The vocational market considerably outperformed the conventional sector, driving most of the [month-to-month] improvement.”
Moyer added that fleets continue to invest in new equipment despite the stagnant freight market. He expects a modest increase in September backlogs once the final Class 8 market data is released later this month. He also anticipates further downward pressure on build rates through the end of the year with inventory remaining near record levels.
Koeck
“The industry saw nearly double the orders in September that we did in August, with August being an uptick from a slower June and July,” said Magnus Koeck, vice president of strategy, marketing and brand management at Volvo Trucks North America. “Some of the strength in orders is due to seasonality, but the major contributing factor is that most OEMs have opened their order books for 2025 slotting, and then we normally see a significant uptick in the orders.”
Koeck added that the freight market has not materially improved over the past several quarters and that rates continue to trend at cycle lows. Because of that, he does not believe the increased order pace was economically derived demand among tractor customers. But Koeck also is confident VTNA is well-positioned with its current lineup of products.
Randall
“The substantial jump in September’s Class 8 truck orders to 34,383 units is a clear signal of the industry’s forward momentum as we open order books for 2025,” said Jonathan Randall, president at Mack Trucks North America. “While we remain attentive to current freight market conditions, the strong order numbers, particularly in the straight truck segment, point to underlying economic resilience. At Mack Trucks, we’re poised to meet this demand.”
Truck Orders in 2025: What Can We Expect?
Brett Lankford from Fetch Freight and Tim Denoyer from ACT Research dive into the key insights from the Market Vitals Seminar.
Click the link below to watch the full conversation! https://t.co/tINNaWfXen — ACT Research (@actresearch) September 19, 2024
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