Class 8 orders in June surprised on the high side after a solid May. Total net orders were 26,729 units. Classes 5-7 net orders declined for the second consecutive month, coming in at 15,055 units. These results were published in the latest State of the Industry report, recently released by ACT Research Co. (ACT). The report covers Classes 5 through 8 vehicles for the North American market.
“Since the summer usually sees a lull in order placement, having Class 8 net orders approach 27,000 before adjustment is a sign of underlying market strength,” said Jim Meil, ACT’s principal, industry analysis. “At the midyear point, Class 8 net orders year-to-date stood at an average of over 28,000 per month and 28 percent ahead of last year,” he said.
Concerning Classes 5-7 orders, Meil said that in the context of gradual improvement in key market drivers for medium duty trucks, “we believe the June results are more noise than fundamentals at work. A look at year-to-date results supports this view: net orders for the first half of 2014 sums to more than 106,600 units, 12.5 percent above the same time period in 2012.”
