SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – Peterbilt is projecting sales of Class 8 trucks in Canada and the U.S. to reach between 235,000 and 265,000 units this year, with another 85,000 medium-duty trucks to be sold on top of that. Several economic conditions back the healthy projections.
ARLINGTON, VA — Truck tonnage dropped for the first time in three months in December, according to the American Trucking Associations (ATA). The group’s seasonally adjusted index fell for the first time since September, losing 5.7% month-over-month, but was up 5.9% over the same time the year before – a finish the ATA called very strong.
LAS VEGAS, NV – Repairing trucks and trailers is big business in Canada, and it’s getting bigger. The nation’s aftermarket serving Class 6-8 trucks and trailers was worth $4.2 billion in 2017, and is projected to reach $4.4 billion this year, according to analysts at MacKay and Company. Parts prices are expected to rise 3.7% because of factors including the Canada-U.S. exchange rate. “Everything looks fairly positive,” says John Blodgett, vice president - sales and marketing, referring to growth in oil activity, the Gross Domestic Product, and international trade. “Obviously if the U.S. screws up NAFTA and provides some issues there … that could potentially have a negative impact. Hopefully level heads will figure that out and we won’t have too much impact from that.” Like most other analysts, the team at MacKay and Company was surprised by the 2017 market for equipment sales. In a good way.
LAS VEGAS, NV – The U.S. government itself shut down over the weekend, but the overall economy of Canada’s largest trading partner seems to be in good shape. The country’s Gross Domestic Product expanded by 2.3% over the past year. “This is, all in all, a decent number but not an impressive number,” said Bill Strauss, senior economist and economic advisor with the Chicago Federal Reserve. Annual growth experienced in the 1990s was closer to 3-4%. But steady growth like this can be good news, easing the concern about a market correction, he told a crowd at the Heavy Duty Dialogue in Las Vegas. The country is in the midst of its third-longest expansion in history, now in its ninth year.
BLOOMINGTON, IN – Conditions remained strong in November despite a decline from the month before say analysts at FTR Intelligence. The group’s monthly index measured a month-over-month decline to a level it calls more sustainable after extreme weather and tight labor conditions caused a short-term spike in October.
TORONTO, ON – Canadian freight volumes closed out 2017 in record-breaking fashion reports TransCore Link Logistics. The company says Canadian and cross-border freight volumes saw unprecedented growth in the last quarter of the year. Volumes were up by 51% year-over-year, and 9% compared to the previous quarter.
BLOOMINGTON, IN – FTR Intelligence is predicting the strong start for trucking in 2018 will continue, leaving fleets to get creative when solving the problems created by a market already at capacity. Avery Vise, vice president trucking research, says although fuel rates leveled in the first week of the new year, they aren’t expected to drop dramatically in the near future, contributing to record-level spot rates and rising contract rates he expects will peak and then fall sometime in late 2018 or early 2019, but will still remain high. The reefer market was also up in the first week of 2018, with a polar vortex creating an increased need for temperature-controlled transport to keep products from freezing.
ARLINGTON, VA - The September for-hire trucking market gave back some of the tonnage gains made in the previous month, according to American Trucking Associations' (ATA) Advanced Seasonally Adjusted For-Hire Truck Tonnage Index. Tonnage slipped 0.9% in September when compared with August, however it was still up 7.4% year over year. The ATA says year-to-date, compared with the same nine months in 2016, tonnage is up 2.4%.
BLOOMINGTON, IN - FTR Intelligence expects the economy to slow down before the end of the year, matching slower freight growth. The company reported improvements to shipping conditions in June over the previous month, but warns that slow contract pricing increases, and a modest weakening of the expected regulatory environment, will mean slower growth and fairly moderate conditions in the short-term.
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