Preliminary net trailer orders plummeted more than 12,500 units from March to April, a contraction of about 57%. At 9,400 units, order intake was nearly 32% lower compared to April 2024, according to ACT Research. Seasonal adjustment (SA) at this point in the annual order cycle raises April’s tally to 11,400 units, nearly halving March’s seasonally adjusted intake (22.7k SA). Final April results will be available later this month. This preliminary market estimate is typically within ±5% of the final order tally.
“After an upside surprise in March, lower April net order intake was expected, as it is one of the weaker order months of the annual cycle. More concerning given the state of industry backlogs, but again not surprising, was that this April’s net orders were well below last April’s order intake, which itself was a muted year,” said Jennifer McNealy, Director CV Market Research & Publications at ACT Research.
She cautioned, “With weak for-hire truck market fundamentals, low used equipment valuations, relatively full inventories, high interest rates, and the ambiguity of policy shifts still in play, ACT’s expectations for subdued build and order intake levels during 2025 remain intact. While speculative, what we thought may have happened in March was a pull-forward of orders in advance of possible tariff-related cost increases to come. While good news for last month, pull-forward, if that is the case, means orders placed will not need to be placed at a later date, and may be a contributing factor to the greater-than-expected drop in April.”
ACT Research’s State of the Industry: U.S. Trailers report provides a monthly review of the current U.S. 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. It is accompanied by a database that gives historical information from 1996 to the present, as well as a ready-to-use graph packet, to allow organizations in the trailer production supply chain, and those following the investment value of trailers, trailer OEMs, and suppliers to better understand the market.