Srong Economy Buoys Truck Demand

If sales of Class 8 trucks keep going the way they are, the dawn of the new millennium will see more than 250,000 rigs less than a year old plying the nation’s highways.

July sales of Class 8 trucks totaled 21,933, up 25% from the same period in 1998, according to Ward Communications, an industry analysis firm based in Southfield, Mich. The total through the first seven months of 1999 was 149,501, a 28.8% increase from the 116,079 posted last year.

While most Class 8 truck makers have passed the mid-year point with reason to celebrate, Navistar International has seen its fortune change from June.

As it has all year, Freightliner led the charge with 7,176 big trucks sold in July, up 30.7% from 1998. The sales gave the manufacturer, based in Portland, Ore., a 32.7% share of the market.

The biggest percentage increase was posted by a Freightliner subsidiary, Sterling, which had sales of 1,211 last month in earning 5.5% of the market. It marked a 301% jump above the 320 vehicles sold in July 1998, which was part of Sterling’s startup period.

Jon Wyman, vice president of sales for Sterling, attributed the continuing high level of sales throughout the industry to continued strength in consumer spending.

“When consumers buy goods, they are inevitably delivered by truck,” he said.

Also, Wyman said, railroads have experienced declines in service that has prompted shippers to switch to trucks.

For the full story, see the August 23 print edition of Transport Topics. Subscribe today.