North American fleets ordered 33,500 Class 8 trucks in November, according to the most recent data from specialist firm FTR. This is an increase of 12% compared to the month of October.
On an annual basis, however, orders were 7% lower than in November 2023 but were still above seasonal trends, the average for the last seven years being 30,393 units ordered for the month of November.
The September-November period saw truck orders increase 1% compared to the same three months of 2023, signaling some momentum as 2025 order books open.
The growth in orders in November was widespread across manufacturers, with highway trucks still more popular than vocational heavy goods vehicles.
Trump’s tariffs and the price of trucks in the United States
The election of Donald Trump as president of the United States could have an impact on truck prices in his own country, warns Dan Moyer, senior commercial vehicle segment analyst at FTR.
This is perhaps why several American fleets will rush to order their units in December, before the new president takes office on January 20.
Mr. Moyer recalls that more than 40% of Class 8 trucks sold in the United States are manufactured in Mexico. If the Trump administration were to impose tariffs of 25% on them, as it wants to do for imports from Canada, this would inevitably be reflected in sales prices.
This announcement, if it were to materialize, would represent a challenge for the industry, which is already struggling with preparations for the arrival of EPA 2027 emissions standards, believes Mr. Moyer.
“If these tariffs were to take effect in the first quarter of 2025, original equipment manufacturers may struggle to quickly ramp up production before then, due to labor and supply chain constraints , especially during the slow production periods from December to February,” observes the analyst.
He notes, however, that inventories of Class 8 trucks are currently relatively high, enough to partially respond to a sudden increase in retail sales.
