Orders for new commercial trailers jumped 55% in August over the comparable month last year, and new orders for the year to date are now 71% above the first eight months of 2009, ACT Research Co. reported.

New orders for Class 8 trucks in North America climbed sharply in August, two commercial vehicle research companies said in preliminary reports.

U.S. factory orders increased 0.1% in July, the Commerce Department said Thursday.

U.S. factory orders dropped 1.2% in June, the Commerce Department said Tuesday.

New orders for commercial trailers, led by dry van orders, more than doubled in June, surging 103% over the same month last year, ACT Research Co. reported.

New commercial trailer net orders jumped 59% in May from the same month last year, ACT Research Co. reported, adding that the market was “continuing a healthy rebound from a very weak 2009.”

U.S. factory orders declined 1.4% in April, the biggest drop since March 2009, the Commerce Department said Friday.

New Class 8 truck orders shot up significantly in May from a year earlier, although they were down slightly from April, two independent research firms reported.

April trailer orders rose 3% from 2009 levels, and the backlog at trailer factories working to fill those orders rose to its highest level in 20 months as demand for equipment continued to exceed build rates, ACT Research Co. reported.

New orders for heavy-duty trucks soared about 90% in April, compared with the same month a year ago, two independent research firms reported.