It was a mixed bag for new equipment orders in September, ACT Research reported Monday in its most recent industry Outlook report.
The company says Class 8 truck orders totaled 18,700 units in September, down 9.5% year over year, but U.S. trailer net orders surged more than 55% month over month, with orders up 40% year-to-date through August, signaling renewed momentum as 2027 order boards open early.
The company attributes the slip in the new truck space to regulatory uncertainty and supply chain challenges that continue to cloud fleet planning and equipment demand.
Verified equipment utilization jumped up by 5.7% and 5.5%, respectively, in the vehicle and trailer sectors in Q3, per data from RigDig (owned by Fusable, parent company of TPS) but, overall, ACT reports the economy story is mixed.
While underlying private domestic demand in the U.S. economy reached its strongest growth rate in over three years in the second quarter, persistent shocks from tariffs, elevated energy prices and rising interest rates are constraining purchasing power and raising business costs. AI-driven investment and a resilient manufacturing sector are offsetting continued weakness in housing, but the company reports higher borrowing costs and supply chain disruptions are tempering demand for capital goods.
[RELATED: Fusable data shows 10,000 new prospective fleets in Q3]
“Fleets are eager to replace aging equipment and prepare for anticipated cost increases, but the ability to plan remains hampered by economic and regulatory uncertainty as well, at least into the medium-term, the evolving supply chain landscape,” says Ken Vieth, ACT’s president and senior analyst. “The recent decline in Class 8 orders in part reflects not only these headwinds, but materially higher backlogs now than at this time last year, and the impact of uncertainty around the final EPA 2027 rule. Rather than a sudden drop in underlying demand, in the case of Class 8, fleets weigh their options in a shifting market.”
Vieth adds in the trailer segment, order activity is “encouraging,” but the next test for the segment will be the industry’s ability to ramp production quickly into a rising demand environment.
“Many new suppliers, brought in to navigate around recent tariffs, remain untested at scale, and shortages of key materials like steel and aluminum are emerging. The challenge ahead will be matching production capacity with rising demand amid ongoing cost pressures.”
