April 2023 preliminary trailer orders show dip, ACT Research reports

ACT Research announced Tuesday April's preliminary net trailer orders decreased sequentially last month and were lower against longer-term comparisons. The company reports 10,000 orders, 11,900 seasonally adjusted, were booked last month.

"Preliminary net orders were 41% lower compared to March's intake, and down 49% versus the same month last year," says Jennifer McNealy, director, CV Market Research & Publications at ACT Research. "Seasonal expectations called for orders to pull back in April, particularly given the near record-level order backlogs and supply-chain challenges being experienced by the industry."

McNealy does note demand appears to be softening, "albeit against strong comparisons. That said, backlogs remain robust. For the time being, the industry is still wrestling with lingering supply-chain challenges, although signs of improvement are seen monthly, and fleets needing trailers remain in queue for orders already placed, with backlogs for most trailer categories still near the top of their target ranges."

McNealy also says by using this data and corresponding OEM build plans for guidance, the trailer backlog "should decrease by around 16,500 units to about 213,000 units when complete April data are released. That said, with orders being preliminary and the build number a projection, there will be some variability in reported backlogs when final data are collected."