COLUMBUS, Ind. -- Class 8 orders rose for a second straight month in January, remaining above 20,000 units for the fourth consecutive month, according to the latest data from ACT Research.
Medium-duty orders came in at nearly 14,000 units. The final numbers were included in ACT’s State of the Industry report, covering Classes 5-8 vehicles for the North American market.
“January is typically a strong order month,” said Kenny Vieth, ACT’s president and senior analyst. “When seasonally adjusted, the month’s net intake for Class 8 dropped to 20,900 units. On that basis, it was the second best order intake in the past 12 months. Concerning medium-duty vehicles, demand has continued to move steadily higher through the cycle-to-date. With reduced drag from state and local government spending and the improving outlook for residential investment, demand for MD vehicles is expected to continue trending higher.”