The natural-gas-powered vehicle market has slowed as diesel fuel prices continue to drop, according to recent ACT Research's study of fuel trends in the heavy duty truck market.

The average spot van rate on DAT load boards was unchanged at $2.01 per mile during the week ending Nov. 1, according to DAT Solutions, which operates the DAT network of load boards (all figures include fuel surcharge). This is the third straight week the average van rate has been unchanged. Van rates have been above $2.00 per mile for most of 2014.

Medium- and heavy-duty trucks and other commercial vehicles classes 5-8 orders were at healthy levels again in September. Total net orders for Class 8 were 24,842 units, up 31 percent year over year. Classes 5-7 net orders, at 19,486, rose to their third-strongest level since early 2008. These results were published in the latest State of the Industry report, recently released by ACT Research Co. (ACT). The report covers Classes 5 through 8 vehicles for the North American market.

The pace of China's economy rose slightly in Q2'14, with growth of 7.5 percent on a year-over-year basis, mirroring the rate witnessed in the same period last year, according to the most recent China Commercial Vehicle Outlook, jointly published quarterly by ACT and SIC, China’s State Information Center. It includes an overview of the China economy and a review and forecast of China's heavy and medium-duty truck and bus markets, as well as analysis of OEM market shares within China.

Demand for commercial vehicles remained healthy in August as 43,100 total NA Classes 5-8 orders were booked. Over the course of the past 12 months, NA Classes 5-8 net orders have totaled 531,500 units, an improvement of 20 percent/90,000 units compared to the preceding 12-month period.

Firm capacity and demand on the spot truckload freight market made for stable rates during the week ending August 23, according to DAT Solutions, which operates the DAT network of load boards. The total number of posted van, refrigerated, and flatbed loads decreased 1.4 percent while the available capacity dipped 0.1 percent compared to the previous week.