November net U.S. trailer orders, at 39,590 units, were 17% lower compared to October, coming in 27% lower on a seasonally-adjusted basis, according to ACT Research’s State of the Industry: U.S. Trailers report. Still, trailer orders were 22% above the year-ago level.
“Discussions across the past month continue to indicate more OEMs are expanding the availability of 2023 build slots, but 2023 is not yet fully open. Supply-chain concerns still linger, so OEMs are hesitant to overpromise and underdeliver for the second half of 2023, where visibility is limited,” said Jennifer McNealy, director–CV market research and publications at ACT Research. “That said, nearly as soon as a build slot is available, there is a fleet ready to fill it with an order.”
Meanwhile, backlogs are resuming growth in line with “typical seasonality,” as orders flow as OEMs open or expand their 2023 build slot offerings, she noted.
“We expect this trend to continue,” McNealy concluded. “November activity resulted in the industry closing the month with a 7.9-month backlog-to-build ratio (7.3 months seasonally adjusted), as order intake remained stronger than the uptick in build rates.”
ACT Research’s State of the Industry: U.S. Trailers report provides a monthly review of the current US trailer market statistics, as well as trailer OEM build plans and market indicators divided by all major trailer types, including backlogs, build, inventory, new orders, cancellations, net orders, and factory shipments.