NA Classes 5-8 Vehicle Orders Continue Strong in March

ACT Research reports despite retrenching from February, Class 8 demand remained strong in March

 Preliminary NA Class 8 net orders in March were 40,000 units, down 10% from February, but a whopping 424% higher than March of last year’s COVID-stricken intake. NA Classes 5-7 demand, with orders at 31,400 units, were up 19% from February. Demand was more than double (103%) its year-ago level. Complete industry data for March, including final order numbers, will be published by ACT Research in mid-April.

“Fanning the flames of an already robust economy, $1.9T in additional stimulus has started filtering its way into consumers’ pocketbooks,” said Steve Tam, ACT’s Vice President. He continued, “In addition, the prospect of a $2T infrastructure bill has consumers and businesses setting their sights higher for both the near- and mid-terms. And, included in that outlook appears to be a need for an increasing number of commercial vehicles.”

Regarding the heavy-duty market, Tam commented, “Despite retrenching from February, Class 8 demand remained strong in March, well above replacement and even anticipated economic growth, let alone the industry’s ability to keep pace in the current supply chain constrained environment.” He noted, “In similar bullish fashion, consumer demand, fueled at least in part by the optimism associated with the nearly $2T in recently approved stimulus, has caused buyers of medium-duty commercial vehicles to remain at the demand trough for yet another month. This is particularly interesting, given the medium duty’s second fiddle position in the supply chain pecking order.”

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