ACT Research published this week its most recent North American Commercial Vehicle Outlook report, which addressed the anticipated surge in Class 8 orders coupled with robust pent-up demand at year end.
“In line with expectations, the industry has witnessed a surge of Class 8 orders into year end,” says Kenny Vieth, ACT’s President and Senior Analyst. “The resulting growth in order backlogs supports higher production and gives OEMs and suppliers good visibility through the first half of 2023.”
Vieth adds that with strong demand in place and inflation metrics moderating, “we are now more convinced that first half build rates will be sustained deeper into second half of 2023. The more hopeful view on inflation leads us to modestly raise our 2023 Class 8 build expectations.”
He adds, “supporting the upwards Class 8 revision, we have tempered the severity of the decline we anticipate in freight activity in 2023. To be clear, we continue to expect a macro recession, and a slight year over year decline in Class 8 build, but recent economic reports and still strong Class 8 fundamentals have us thinking in a more encouraging direction.”
