ACT Research released its latest State of the Industry: Classes 5-8 Report Tuesday, noting well-behaved cancellations, steady build rates and an order-to-build imbalance that is keeping backlogs falling from high levels as industry trends for February.
“The data continue to tell a couple of stories. First and foremost, it is a story of current demand strength, with truckers making money, the near-term backlog jam-packed, and robust retail sales suggesting good follow-through on all those orders,” says Kenny Vieth, ACT Research’s president and senior analyst.
“The second story starts with ‘puny’ freight metrics, pivots on robust build and sales and ends at the nominal reality of a 70,000 Class 8 inventory.”
The report also notes freight growth is stagnating and Class 8 population growth is accelerating, a supply-demand story that typically does not end well. And in the medium-duty market, Vieth says metrics are “aligned with expectations; cancellations are at benign levels, build rebounded to trend rates in February, and backlogs reached a nine-plus-year high.”
