FTR has released preliminary data showing November Class 8 truck net orders at 20,915 units the second consecutive month above the 20,000-unit threshold. While November 2013 orders were 6% above a year ago they were down 19% month-over-month.
Orders for the three-month period including November annualize to 266,600 units. Preliminary order numbers are for all major North American OEMs.
Don Ake, FTR vice-president, Commercial Vehicles, says: "This is the highest number of orders in the month of November since 2010 continuing to show a solid year-over-year increase. However the numbers are not sufficient to indicate a strong beginning to 2014. Order activity was below our expectations and needs to be stronger in December to fill up Q1 build slots. The market continues to grow, but slowly. The three-month average is consistent with our 2014 forecast."