North American industrial truck orders confirmed renewed momentum in January, with information pointing to stable year-over-year features in Class 8 demand.
Nevertheless, January’s rebound in truck orders displays fleets lastly executing delayed substitute plans slightly than increasing capability, in line with studies from ACT Analysis and FTR Transportation Intelligence.
“Some stabilization and enchancment within the freight market since late 2025 additionally could have offered modest assist on the margin, however fleet profitability and capital self-discipline stay binding constraints,” Dan Moyer, senior analyst for industrial automobiles at FTR, unhappy in an announcement.
Moyer added that buying conduct continues to be replacement-driven, with solely modest early affect from EPA 2027 laws.
FTR reported preliminary January Class 8 internet orders of 32,500 items, down 24% month over month however up 27% 12 months over 12 months and nicely above the 10-year January common of 26,300 items.
January marked the second consecutive month of year-over-year development — the primary such stretch since spring 2024 — although cumulative Class 8 orders for the 2026 order season stay down 13% 12 months over 12 months, underscoring lingering softness in underlying freight demand.
ACT Analysis, in the meantime, estimated preliminary December North American Class 8 internet orders at 30,800 items, additionally up 20% 12 months over 12 months, reflecting a modest rebound after a weak fall ordering season.
ACT Analysis analyst Carter Vieth stated improved regulatory readability round EPA’s 2027 emissions requirements, firmer spot market circumstances following winter climate disruptions, and clearer tariff-adjusted pricing helped jumpstart truck gross sales final month.
“After a weak October and November, a couple of issues have occurred that, in our considering, have helped spur latest order exercise,” Vieth stated in an announcement.
Medium-duty demand remained extra subdued. ACT Analysis reported preliminary January Class 5-7 orders of 15,800 items, up 11% 12 months over 12 months, although analysts cautioned that the rise was inflated by an unusually weak comparability interval in early 2025.
Each analysis corporations warned {that a} sturdy restoration would require sustained year-over-year order development alongside significant enchancment in freight volumes, pricing and service profitability — circumstances that stay unsure amid elevated prices and ongoing macroeconomic and geopolitical dangers.
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