Class 8 Orders Cleared 20,000 in December
Class 8 orders cleared 21,000 in December, ending the year on a solid but lukewarm note, analysts said.
Orders reached 21,400 units, down 24% year-over-year, ACT Research Co. said, citing preliminary figures that will be revised later in the month. In the 2015 period, orders were 28,150.
“December was the only month in 2016 in which orders rose above 20,000 units,” Kenny Vieth, ACT’s president, said in a statement.
In 10 months of 2015, orders climbed above 20,000, with two months clearing 30,000, according to ACT.
The research company FTR pegged preliminary net orders at 21,200, calling the volume very consistent with the order demand of the past two months.
Class 8 backlogs should rise significantly in results for December 2016, FTR said.
Don Ake, FTR’s vice president of commercial vehicles, called the volume “decent” and said the demand “met expectations.”
“Production was weak in December," he added, "but based on the Q4 orders, it should begin a modest recovery in February.”
