COLUMBUS, Ind. – ACT Research says the robust order season for U.S. trailers continued in November with an 18% gain over the previous month and 10% from a year ago.

“It can be difficult to fully appreciate the strength of trailer orders in the past two years, with six of the industry’s top 10 strongest order months having occurred since October 2014,” said Frank Maly, director of CV transportation analysis and research at ACT. “That strength helped generate an order board stretching well into 2016, but it is also a cause for concern, which comes from an apparent CV market imbalance. Although the trailer market continues at a solid pace, the tractor market has registered a noticeable slowdown in orders, and considered in tandem, this disconnect is somewhat disconcerting.”

Maly said the majority of November’s growth were from dry vans, which were up 47% month to month and 33% from the year prior.

“Additionally, orders strong enough to generate backlog growth will be the best indication of industry health at year-end,” he said. “Large fleets continue to drive the trailer market, while vocational segments continue to be challenged. The total trailer market is on target to post one of its best years in history.”

ACT publishes new and used commercial vehicle industry data, market analysis and forecasting.