July commercial trailer net orders were up 74 percent from a very weak July of 2009, continuing a healthy rebound from what was one of the worst years in the commercial trailer industry, according to ACT Research Co. Dry van trailers, the largest segment of commercial trailers, were up 134 percent year-over-year in July.
In the latest release of its State of the Industry: U.S. Trailers, ACT noted that net orders of 10,688 in July were 9 percent below June levels, which is entirely explained by normal seasonality of new orders. The most recent six months of commercial trailer net orders are the best six-month span since the period ending February of 2008. Additionally, for the first time since 1998, the backlog of orders for the industry increased from June to July.
"While the decline from June to July may appear disappointing, the overall direction of the commercial trailer sector continues to improve," said Kenny Vieth, partner and senior analyst with ACT Research. "However, it should also be noted that these gains are coming off a very weak 2009 and, like the commercial truck sector, net orders have yet to reach normal replacement levels," added Vieth.
