According to data from FTR, preliminary Class 8 truck net orders for April measured at 23,600 units, maintaining the steady track that started seven months ago. While OEM activity was modestly better for some and down marginally for others month over month, April orders met expectations with a 4% increase over March and up 77% versus a year ago, FTR says. Backlogs should increase in April, getting close to where they were a year ago. Class 8 orders for the past six months now annualize to 262,000 units.
“The order pattern continues to track a sustained, normal pattern,” said Don Ake, vice president of commercial vehicles at FTR. “In this order cycle, the fleets did not place all the big orders in October and November. The all didn’t jump into the pool at once. Some fleets did order at that time, but since then, fleets have placed orders in a more measured, steady fashion as they became more confident about 2017. There should be one more month of good orders before the traditional summer break.
ACT Research Co.’s preliminary numbers also had heavy-duty orders steady, at 23,900 units. According to ACT, this continues a surprisingly robust trend, with this being the fifth consecutive month in which orders have been above 20,000 units.
“As this is typically the time of the year when orders begin to moderate, seasonal adjustment provides a small positive boost to the actual volume,” said Kenny Vieth, ACT’s president and senior analyst. “With seasonal adjustment, April’s Class 8 order volume rises 300 units.”
Medium-duty orders, on the other hand, fell according to ACT’s numbers, down 25% from March and 10% from last April. “As April tends to be a slightly above average order month, seasonal adjustment lowers the month’s net order volume, which falls to 18,200 units,” commented Vieth. “Taking the past two months’ orders together puts the total roughly in line with activity since December: From December to February, medium-duty orders averaged 22,500 units per month. In March and April, the average stands at 21,700 units.”
