Preliminary used Class 8 retail volumes (same dealer sales) grew 20 percent month-over-month, but were 14 percent lower compared to February 2021, according to the latest preliminary release of the State of the Industry: U.S. Classes 3-8 Used Trucks published by ACT Research.

Other data released in ACT’s preliminary report included month-over-month comparisons for February 2022, which showed that the average retail price rose 8 percent, as average miles were flat and average age rose 1 percent compared to January. Compared to February 2021, the average retail price was 85 percent higher, with average miles and age greater by 3 percent and 7 percent, respectively.

ACT’s Classes 3-8 Used Truck Report provides data on the average selling price, miles, and age based on a sample of industry data.

According to Steve Tam, Vice President at ACT Research, “Presumably, the bumps in December and January new truck production freed the logjam of trucks headed to the used truck market. As evidence, preliminary same dealer retail sales popped in February, more than the expected seasonal gain.”

He elaborated, “More importantly, it is obvious that demand for used equipment remains robust. Regardless, inventory is still in short supply, so longer-term comparisons continue to be unfavorable.”

Tam continued, “The preliminary average retail selling price for Class 8 trucks has yet to show any signs of retreat, climbing 8 percent month-over-month in February. Near-term growth continues to be overshadowed by longer-term comparisons, where prices were up 85 percent year-over-year and 85 percent year-to-date.” He concluded, “It is also worth noting that the higher prices are shrugging off the fact that, collectively, used trucks are older and have more miles on them for just about every time period comparison. The presumption is that fleets have been forced to hold onto their trucks longer than normal as they await delivery of the supply-chain constraint delayed new units.”