Final North American Class 8 net orders totaled 13,172 units in July, down 2.1% year over year, as published in ACT Research’s latest State of the Industry: NA Classes 5-8 report.
“July marks the seventh consecutive month of Y/Y Class 8 order declines,” Carter Vieth, research analyst at ACT Research, said. “Tractor orders increased 6.6% Y/Y to 8,314 units, but considering July is the weakest month for orders, delayed planning due to tariffs seems responsible for the modest bump in July tractor orders as weak fundamentals remain in place.”
“Vocational orders totaled 4,858 units, down 14% Y/Y. Vocational orders continue to flounder on a troika of headwinds: 1) EPA’27 low-NOx rules are now highly uncertain, with most fleets now thinking a complete repeal is the way forward, removing the need for prebuying; 2) Slowdown in housing, manufacturing and private construction, plus continued elevated financing costs are weakening demand in key vocational sectors; 3) Tariff-related equipment costs/uncertainty are keeping fleets on the sidelines for longer,” Vieth said.
Regarding medium duty, Vieth said, “Total Classes 5-7 orders fell 16% Y/Y to 13,159 units. MD orders have slowed notably across the past seven months, with still elevated inventories, and a weaker economic outlook. Slowing services momentum is a particular concern for MD demand.”
