According to the preliminary numbers from ACT Research Co. and FTR, July trailer orders set records for the month, hitting surprising levels in what is historically the weakest-performing month of the year.
FTR has the number for July at 28,000 units, which the company called “surprising.”
“This is a terrific order number for a month of July,” said Don Ake, FTR’s vice president of commercial vehicles. “This indicates the trailer market should continue to be robust in 2019. Strong economic and freight growth is expected to continue and, as a result, trailer production is at record levels. Orders should stay elevated as fleets continue to place orders earlier than normal for 2019.”
ACT’s preliminary estimate for July 2018 net trailer orders is 29,300 units.
“After a steady June, fleets came roaring back into the market in July,” said Frank Maly, ACT’s director of CV transportation analysis and research. “OEMs had their strongest July net order volume in history, breaking a record that was set in 1994. Net orders were 102% better than last July and 45% above June volume. Year-to-date, net orders of just over 200,000 trailers are up 30% from 2017.
“When seasonally adjusted, July came in above 44,000 units, the second-strongest monthly reading in industry history,” Maly added. “That converts to a stunning 528,000 SAAR. Both dry vans and reefers paced overall performance, closing the month with backlogs that now stretch into March of next year. While strength was evident across all industry segments, it is noteworthy that cancellations remain low, indicating strong fleet confidence as we move through the rest of this year and into next.”
