Though December order and production data isn’t official yet, it is fair to say the year was less than stellar in the trailer space.
In releasing ACT Research’s most recent state of the trailer industry report Thursday, Director of CV Market Research and Publications Jennifer McNealy states November’s cancellation rate, as a percentage of backlog, was 2.5%, with data continuing to show elevated cancellations in dry van and tank segments. The tank market saw the highest rate, attributed to weak oil and gas activity.
“Despite having moved to the historical start of the order season, build again outpaced orders in November. Trailer production was 1,800 units above orders, with backlogs contracting 2% sequentially and 24% compared to the same period in 2024,” says McNealy “Backlogs and build levels, with five fewer production days in November, conspired to carve a little more off the backlog-to-build (BL/BU) ratio. After two consecutive 3.3-month readings, the BL/BU slipped to 3.1 months in November, which still commits the industry into mid-Q1 2026 albeit at a somewhat anemic level.”
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McNealy adds the data, coupled with the already low BL/BU ratio, soft demand fundamentals, higher input costs and more, mean concerns across the trailer segment will remain high entering 2026
“Looking beyond the trough, we continue to hear anxiousness about whether or not the industry will be prepared for a possible sharp increase in demand once tariffs and trade stabilize, particularly given the rising replacement demand from an aging fleet,” she says.
