Commercial vehicle trailer orders closed 2016 on a solid note, as December dry van orders were up 26% year-over-year, with reefer orders up almost 140% over 2015, according to the latest data from ACT Research Co. Despite that solid y/y performance, both new and net orders were down 5% from the previous month. Additionally, the impact of higher energy prices was evident in the vocational segments, as flats, dumps, and bulk tanks all posted solid month-over-month improvement.

“For the full year, industry net orders of just under 229,000 units were down 28% versus 2015,” said Frank Maly, director of CV transportation analysis and research at ACT. “Dry vans and reefers, both off 30% to 31% year-over-year, were the major factors in that total market performance, although net orders for every trailer category in our group of ten were down from 2015.”