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April 25, 2019
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
ACT Research: U.S. Trailer Orders Continued to Drop in March, -48% Y/Y and -36 YTD
COLUMBUS, IN – US trailer order volume
came in below previous year volume for the
fourth straight month in March, but OEMs still
booked nearly 16,000 net orders during the
month, according to this month’s issue of
ACT Research’s State of the Industry: U.S.
Trailer Report. Near-record backlogs have
filled 2019 build slots for many OEMs, and
there continues to be some resistance
toward booking orders into next year.
“While some fleets have fulfilled investment
plans for the year, others reportedly are
seeking more equipment this year,” said
Frank Maly, Director–CV Transportation
Analysis and Research at ACT Research. He
continued, “However, their efforts will likely be in vain, with dry van and reefer orderboards
consuming most available production slots for the year.”
Additionally, Maly said, “Factory inventory was a mixed bag across categories, but most unusual was
reefers, up 60% year-over-year and at the highest level in our historical database, which started in
1990.” Further, the report noted that while the cancellation rate continued at acceptable levels, the
high backlog, at 7.5 months, helped disguise higher cancellation volume. Cancellations have
averaged more than 2,300 per month for the last four months, the longest string of higher volume
months since the mid-year 2016 market inflection.
ACT Research is recognized as the leading publisher of commercial vehicle truck, trailer, and bus
industry data, market analysis and forecasting services for the North American and China markets.
ACT’s analytical services are used by all major North American truck and trailer manufacturers and
their suppliers, as well as banking and investment companies. More information can be found at
www.actresearch.net.
For more information about ACT’s State of the Industry: US Trailer Report, go to http://
www.actresearch.net/services/publications/state-of-the-industry-u-s-trailers/.
Media Contact:
Jennifer McNealy
812-379-2085
jsmcnealy@actresearch.net
Contributor to Blue Chip Economic Indicators and Member of WSJ Economic Panel
www.actresearch.net