COLUMBUS, Ind. – After monumental increases in trailer orders at this time last year, activity has definitely slowed in recent months.

June saw the third consecutive monthly decline in total commercial trailer net orders, with the industry posting a 26 percent decline from May, reports ACT Research in its latest State of the Industry: U.S. Trailers report.

That decline, in combination with an increase in trailer production, resulted in industry backlogs falling 5 percent month over month.

However, ACT also noted that despite the decline in the orderboard during the month, industry backlog is still more than double the level of one year ago.

"The fall-off in net orders was greater than anticipated,” said Frank Maly, director, CV Transportation Analysis and Research with ACT. "A positive factor to keep in mind is that cancellations of existing commitments on the order boards were not an issue; new order weakness was the cause.

"We are in a seasonally low time of the year for new order placement. Fleet order rates will need to be closely monitored over the next couple of months to determine if the recent order softness is a short-lived pause or the start of a new trend in the industry recovery."