COLUMBUS, Ind. — Class 8 net orders for May were just over 20,500 units, while Classes 5-7 orders totalled 19,900 units, according to the latest data from ACT Research.

The slowdown in Class 8 order activity was expected, according to Steve Tam, ACT’s vice-president, commercial vehicle sector.

“While focusing on the order intake of the past may bring feelings of euphoria, a glance into near term expectation is sobering and much more instructive,” he said. “Historical order placement practices suggest orders for the next four months will be 15% to 20% below average.”

May’s strong order activity surprised.

“The MD market in May bucked seasonal expectations, which called for moderate slowing, but the intake resulted in a nearly 11% sequential gain,” Tam said. “More importantly, it was 22% higher than May 2014, and on a SAAR basis, orders are flowing in at a little over a 230,000 unit pace, very much in line with expectations.”