Class 8 orders recovered to 23,100 units in December, FTR Intel reported, returning to the same range as September and October, following the previous trend of orders being slightly above expected production levels. December order activity was plus-139% month-over-month but still down year-over-year at minus-55% from December 2021. Class 8 orders totaled 365,000 units for 2021.
“The current order volume still understates the tremendous demand for new trucks,” said Don Ake, VP of commercial vehicles for FTR. “The OEMs have a large number of fleet commitments for 2022. They are delaying entering these orders until they know how many they will be able to build each month. Supply chain delays continue to constrain build rates.
According to FTR, the December number is positive in the sense that all OEMs entered some orders, indicating at least a bit of optimism about improved future supply chain performance. OEMs are content to keep backlogs at current levels and continue to enter orders a portion at a time due to uncertain supply chain conditions.
“Fleets need a considerable number of new trucks right now. Industry capacity is extremely tight, resulting in elevated freight rates,” Ake added. “The carriers have freight to haul and funds available for new trucks, but OEMs can’t build enough. Also, the large fleets have had to run vehicles beyond their trade-in cycles and need replacement trucks.”
