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International Posts Q1 Loss on Sales Slump, One-Time Costs
Springfield Sale Adds $180M in Expenses, $19M for Severance; Levin Cautious Even as Q1 Orders Jump 81%
Key Takeaways:
- International posted a third consecutive quarterly loss in Q1 as vehicle sales fell 21% to 13,300.
- Revenue fell 19% to $2.07 billion, and results included $180 million in Springfield sale costs and $19.9 million in severance.
- Production of International’s CV Series will end Sept. 10, and International will operate four plants after Springfield’s sale closes.
International Motors posted a third consecutive quarterly loss in the first three months of 2026 on the back of a slump in sales plus plant divestment and severance payment charges.
Lisle, Ill.-based International — which owns school bus manufacturer IC Bus as well as the eponymous truck brand — sold 13,300 vehicles in Q1, a 21% decrease compared with 16,900 vehicles in the year-ago period, the company reported April 13.
Sales also fell 15.8% compared with 15,800 trucks and buses in the fourth quarter of 2025.
Parent company Traton Group said April 29 that International sold 10,413 trucks in Q1, a 24% decrease from 13,702 trucks in the same period 12 months earlier.
International posted sales revenue of $2.07 billion in Q1, a 19% decrease compared with $2.54 billion a year earlier.
As a consequence, International posted an adjusted operating loss of $83 million in Q1, compared with a $40.9 million profit in the year-ago period. Traton reports earnings in euros, and all conversions were correct as of April 29. International posted losses of $131.8 million and $129.1 million, respectively, in the final two quarters of 2025.
The most recent results were also hurt by $180 million in expenses related to the sale of the Springfield assembly plant and $19.9 million for severance payments in Q1.
Ongoing market weakness led to the departure of 300 corporate salaried employees in February. No hourly production plant workers were affected.
However, the future of staff at the Springfield plant remains unclear after the sale of the facility to Canadian manufacturer Roshel.
The sale came about because General Motors is axing its Chevrolet Silverado medium-duty line, which is assembled under contract at Springfield. Production of International’s CV Series will end Sept. 10 as a result of the sale.
International will operate four manufacturing plants once the sale of Springfield closes:
- The Escobedo Assembly Plant in Escobedo, Mexico
- The Huntsville Powertrain Plant in Huntsville, Ala.
- The San Antonio Manufacturing Plant
- The Tulsa Bus Plant in Tulsa, Okla.
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An assembly line at the International plant in Escobedo, Mexico. (International Motors)
Headwinds from International’s sales decrease and one-time charges plus tariff costs contributed to Traton reporting a $680.1 million adjusted operating result, a 10% decrease compared with $755 million in the year-ago period.
Traton’s revenue in Q1 totaled $11.96 billion, down 4% compared with $12.4 billion a year earlier.
The Volkswagen division’s global truck and bus sales in the most recent quarter fell 6% to 68,604 from 73,090 vehicles in the year-ago period. Sales of trucks by the company’s divisions totaled 53,535 vehicles in Q1, down 7% compared with 57,566 vehicles a year earlier.
However, Traton executives told analysts during an April 29 investor call that they were optimistic about demand in Europe and North America in the coming months.
Traton’s orders in Q1 rose 18% to 87,775 vehicles from 74,307 trucks and buses in the same period 12 months earlier. Of those orders, 71,100 were trucks, a 21% increase compared with 58,891 trucks in Q1 2025.
International orders in the most recent quarter jumped 81% to 22,235 trucks and buses from 12,285 vehicles in the year-ago period. The increase was due to improved U.S. market conditions in the heavy-duty truck sector, Traton said.
Traton continues to expect Class 8 sales in North America of between 246,000 and 284,000 trucks. Traton’s estimates include the U.S., Canada and Mexico, while other forecasts comprise just the first two nations.
“After more than four months of consistently strong U.S. demand, we are increasingly confident that we have passed the trough of the cycle,” Traton CEO Christian Levin told analysts.
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(International Motors)
The main reason for the jump in orders was an increase in freight rates and a better balance between capacity and demand, the company’s top executive added.
Class 8 orders rose more than 100% year over year for a second consecutive month in March, the latest ACT Research data shows.
Spot and contract rates hit two-year highs in March, DAT Freight & Analytics reported.
Regulatory measures — including the Department of Transportation and the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration shuttering noncompliant driver training schools, imposing stricter rules for non-domiciled commercial driver licenses and enforcing English-language proficiency requirements — have cut capacity levels, with rates rising as a result.
How long the torrid pace of orders will continue is a conundrum vexing Traton executives, Levin said.
“We remain a little bit cautious, although we must admit that we have perhaps been overly cautious here in the view of the first quarter,” Levin said, adding that April levels were “coming along strong.” However, there are so many uncertainties in the U.S. and across the globe that firm conclusions were hard to come by.
That said, price and production increases are likely for U.S. customers, no matter how long the surprisingly steep jump in orders lasts. Traton executives said fleets had yet to see the full impact of tariffs imposed by the Trump administration and continued to note that emissions regulations are set to raise prices.
