In its preliminary report on net orders for Class 5-8 trucks for August, ACT Research said 37,200 Classes 5-8 vehicle orders were booked, down 8% from July and down 14% compared to August 2014.

The decline marked the fifth consecutive month that orders have been down, although ACT credits much of the decline on higher backlogs and tougher comps.

“The year-over-year decline marked the fifth consecutive negative reading for Classes 5-8 orders,” said Kenny Vieth, ACT’s president and senior analyst. “However, we continue to believe that much of the order decline is a reflection of larger backlogs and tough comps, rather than any substantive change in demand.”

Vieth also said that Class 8 truck orders experienced an even more severe drop.

“Class 8 orders were 19,700 units, 20% below July orders and 22% below August 2014. Because August is typically the second weakest order month of the year, seasonal adjustment raises the month’s volume to 22,600 units. North American Classes 5-7 vehicle orders rebounded in August to 17,500 units. This result was up 10% from July, but down 3% compared to last August. Historically, August is an above average order month for medium-duty vehicles, so seasonal adjustment actually reduces August’s medium-duty order volume to 17,200 units,” said Vieth.