After an unexpected rally in Q1, 2017, North American MD & HD Classes 5-8 net orders moderated in the second quarter, according to data from ACT Research. While orders were lower quarter over quarter, year over year comparisons are positive by a wide margin. In June, total Classes 5-8 net orders rose over 37% year-over-year to a seasonally adjusted 43,000 units.

For all of Q2, and sticking with seasonally adjusted figures, NA Classes 5-7 net orders totaled 126,550 units/506k SAAR, an increase of 28% from the comparable quarter in 2016, but down 6.5% from Q1 2017 order rate. Note that these numbers are preliminary. Complete industry data for June, including final order numbers, will be published in mid-July.

Class 8 orders rebounded to 18,100 in June, adding 1,200 units from May. “While orders are weak relative to YTD activity, June’s orders were up 39% compared to last year,” said Kenny Vieth, President and Senior Analyst at ACT Research. He continued, “Because of a deep seasonal trend that runs through Class 8 orders, seasonal adjustment provides a significant boost to June’s orders. When adjusted, the June volume rises to 20,200 units.” For all of Q2, Class 8 net orders were booked at a 251k SAAR, versus a 268k SAAR in Q1’17.

Preliminarily, NA Classes 5-7 orders moderated from May, slipping 1,500 units to 20,200 units in June. “Seasonal adjustment boosts June’s MD order volume to 22,700 units, roughly in-line with May’s seasonally adjusted tally (22.8k),” said Vieth. “Benefitting from a particularly easy comp, NA Classes 5-7 orders were up 34% compared to last June’s order intake. In the second quarter, Classes 5-7 orders were booked at a 255k SAAR, down from a 274k SAAR in Q1,” he concluded.