Summer Begins on Positive Note as Class 8 Orders Top 18,000
North American Class 8 orders cleared 18,000 in June, for a 40% year-over-year gain, according to ACT Research Co.
Orders climbed to 18,100, up from 12,956 in the 2016 period, ACT said, citing preliminary data it would revise later in July.
“Because of a deep seasonal trend that runs through Class 8 orders, seasonal adjustment provides a significant boost to June’s orders. When adjusted, the June volume rises to 20,200 units,” ACT President Kenny Vieth said in a statement.
In the 2017 second quarter, Class 8 net orders were booked at a 251,000 seasonally adjusted annual rate, down from 268,000 in the first quarter this year, he said.
The research firm FTR pegged the June orders at 17,600 and also said it was a preliminary figure that is typically revised only slightly later in the month.
“It was a good start to the summer,” Don Ake, FTR’s vice president for commercial vehicles, told Transport Topics.
FTR’s forecast for Class 8 orders this year is 236,000, an increase from 231,000 that it forecast three months ago, Ake said.
