After a largely lethargic year for orders in 2025, recent improvement in Class 8 order activity suggests optimism is growing for 2026, according to the latest release of the North American Commercial Vehicle OUTLOOK by ACT Research.
“In our view, the rise in spot freight rates has given deep-pocketed, large fleets confidence that 2026 will be an improvement from the past three years spent in the trough and is arguably the most important factor driving improved Class 8 order activity. Class 8 orders totaled 30,800 units in January, up 20% Y/Y, and preliminary February orders totaled 46,200 units, jumping 156% Y/Y,” Ken Vieth, president and senior analyst of ACT Research, said. “While weather has certainly provided a kick, the cumulative effect of three-plus years of whittling away at capacity is driving a primarily supply-, rather than demand-driven, recovery.”
Vieth added, “The American Trucking Associations’ mid-November announcement clarifying the EPA’s thinking vis-à-vis the agency’s 2027 low-NOx regulation was a welcome development that has helped to spur order activity.”
Regarding the HD vocational market, Vieth concluded, “With the four biggest technology companies in the US set to deploy $650 billion in capital toward data centers and associated AI buildout needs in 2026, the vocational market appears poised to continue benefitting from strong secular tailwinds that show little sign of slowing in the short term. Additionally, after pulling back on expected prebuying in 2025 due to regulatory and trade uncertainty, vocational orders, like tractor, are benefitting from EPA’27 clarity.”
