ACT Research says Class 8 orders in October hit a 2010 high

Recent data published by ACT Research, a provider of data and analysis for trucks and other commercial vehicles, said that October net orders of heavy-duty Class 8 vehicles at 18,914 units were up 24 percent from September.

September orders were up 15 percent from August, and August was up 15 percent from July.

ACT said in its most recent edition of its State of the Industry: Classes 5-8 Vehicles that Class 8 net orders in October hit its second highest monthly total since April 2008. October 2009 is the highest monthly total during that span, with some carriers ordering lower-priced engines ahead of the EPA’s emissions mandate which upped the price of heavy-duty Class 8 vehicles by about $10,000, according to ACT. 

“While September gave a hint to increasing demand for Class 8 equipment, October orders provided the strongest sign yet that the transportation sector recognizes the need to replace aging equipment,” said Kenny Vieth, ACT president and senior analyst, in a statement.  “With production of equipment rising only slightly in October, the order backlog is now 29 percent above it trough earlier this year, a sign that the commercial vehicle manufacturing sector is getting healthier.”

In a recent interview with LM, Vieth said that based on ACT’s modeling and anecdotal evidence from truckers, it seems like the supply-demand imbalance, which has been tilted away from truckers for the last four years, has gone back to truckers, and it is not abating.

At current levels, Vieth said truck and trailer production is positioned to ramp up as fast as demand is. And with capacity still tight and current fleets aging in conjunction with a potential stretch of increased truckload earnings there could be some staying power for future truck production, he said.