Class 8 sales climb eases truck slump
July offered some respite for big truck producers, as U.S. sales of medium- and heavy-duty models combined fell just 4.6%, the first month of single-digit decline since April. The month's performance was led by strong Class 8 sales, which rose 21% from year-ago on a daily rate basis (25 days this year vs. 24 in 2001) to 14,095 units. Sterling was the only brand down 3.0% to suffer a falloff, though