Preliminary net trailer orders in the US jumped about 3,800 units for two months in 2025 according to a commercial vehicle and freight forecaster.
Indiana-headquartered ACT Research found that the trailer orders for February to March led to an increase of 21 per cent.
The research found that the 22,100 units ordered was a massive 63 per cent increase from figures in March 2024.
Seasonally adjusted figures for the annual order cycle will increase March’s tally to 23,100 units, about 34 per cent above February’s seasonally adjusted intake.
Director of CV Market Research & Publications at ACT Research, Jennifer McNealy, said: “Given that March marks the cyclical beginning of the weaker order months of the year, this month’s data certainly were a high-side surprise.”
“That said, it is not that much of a surprise this year, amid the unprecedented environment in which we find ourselves presently, and we again caution that one month does not make, or in this case buck, the trend.”
McNealy said that ACT Research still expected subdued build and order intake levels during 2025, due to “weak for-hire truck market fundamentals, low used equipment valuations, relatively full inventories, high interest rates, and the ambiguity of policy shifts.”
“While speculative, what we may be seeing in March’s data is a pull-forward of orders in advance of possible tariff-related cost increases to come,” she said.
“While good news for this month, pull-forward, if that is the case, means orders placed now will not need to be placed at a later date.”
ACT Research is recognised as the leading publisher of commercial vehicle truck, trailer, and bus industry data, market analysis, and forecasts for the North America and China markets.
In other news, the American Trucking Associations (ATA) has backed an anti-cargo theft law.
