COLUMBUS, IN – There was a decline in January tractor-trailer orders, ACT Research reported yesterday, continuing what they described as a “monthly saw-tooth order pattern” that began in October.

Despite that pattern, orders were strong enough to show a small gain in January backlog. January backlogs increased to 5.3 months.

“A total of 20,357 net orders were booked in January, down 34 percent from December’s unsustainable level,” said Frank Maly, director-CV Transportation with ACT Research. “However, January activity generally met our expectations that the new year might start a bit slow before gaining stride. The average seasonally adjusted annual rate for the last two months was 269,000 units, which gives a better perspective on the market,” he added.