February Class 8 orders strong

Class 8 truck net orders for February were 27% above February 2013 and represent the 13th consecutive month of year-over-year gains, according to preliminary data compiled by FTR.

With orders of 28,876, February combines with December and January numbers for the best three-month period since 2006. The last six months of Class 8 order activity annualize to 320,500 units. 

“Orders were strong for the third consecutive month and in line with expectations with the market now officially in a growth cycle. The confidence in the industry is picking up steam and we expect 2014 to be a healthy year for Class 8 trucks. The current order activity should begin to put pressure on OEM build rates for Q2 to be more in line with the FTR forecast,” said Don Ake, vice president of commercial vehicles.

Final data for February will be available from FTR later in the month as part of its North American Commercial Truck & Trailer Outlook service.