FTR Associates has released preliminary data showing April Class 8 truck net orders at 23,026, 6% above March numbers. Orders for Class 8 trucks have now been above 20,000 for five consecutive months with April orders 37% improved from a year ago. Even with the one month dip in March orders, the last three months annualize to 270,400 units. Preliminary order numbers are for all major North American OEMs.
 
Jonathan Starks, FTR’s director, transportation analysis commented "orders continue to remain at a healthy level, coming in at the high end of our expectations. This bodes well for a continuation of the modest growth in equipment sales during 2013. Despite this, our optimism is tempered by the weakness seen in much of the economic data over the last month and by our discussions with fleets. There is no desire to add equipment in the near-term and merely replacing equipment doesn't create additional equipment demand beyond our current expectations."