Trailer orders fell off a cliff in April, FTR and ACT Research reported Monday.
FTR pegged orders at 10,669 units, down by 50% from March, and cited volatility stemming from economic policy and uncertainty over the truck freight market as significant headwinds. The company adds that total is a 23% drop year over year, and leaves typical seasonal patterns well behind it, even though trailer orders still exceeded Class 8 net orders for a third month and year-to-date trailer sales for 2025 are still up 27% over the same time last year.
ACT's estimate was even lower at 9,400 units, off by 57% from March and 32% from April 2025. Adjusting for seasonality, ACT's estimate rises to 11,400 units but is still nearly half of March's total of 22,700 seasonally adjusted orders.
"After an upside surprise in March, lower April net order intake was expected, as it is one of the weaker order months of the annual cycle," says Jennifer McNealy, director of CV market research and publications at ACT Research. "More concerning given the state of industry backlogs, but again not surprising, was that this April’s net orders were well below last April’s order intake, which itself was a muted year."
FTR states total trailer build decreased 1% month over month, down 26% year over year, settling out at 17,619 units so far in 2025. Year-to-date, trailer build is down 30% year-over-year, with an average of 15,939 trailers built per month.
"U.S. tariffs and potential retaliatory measures will significantly impact the U.S. trailer market, raising costs for imported materials and affecting domestic production," says Dan Moyer, FTR senior analyst for commercial vehicles.
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FTR adds backlogs decreased by 6,562 units to 120,350 units, lowering the backlog/build ratio to 6.8 months.
"Some fleets may delay new trailer purchases — reflected in the sharp decline in April net orders — and extend equipment lifecycles, boosting aftermarket activity," Moyer says. "Rising costs might also encourage limited industry consolidation, creating acquisition opportunities for larger manufacturers. Trailer industry participants that proactively manage supply chain disruptions and pricing pressures may gain a competitive advantage."
McNealy adds, "With weak for-hire truck market fundamentals, low used equipment valuations, relatively full inventories, high interest rates, and the ambiguity of policy shifts still in play, ACT’s expectations for subdued build and order intake levels during 2025 remain intact. While speculative, what we thought may have happened in March was a pull-forward of orders in advance of possible tariff-related cost increases to come.
She continues, "While good news for last month, pull-forward, if that is the case, means orders placed will not need to be placed at a later date, and may be a contributing factor to the greater-than-expected drop in April."
