“Although greatly reduced from the torrid pace seen earlier this year, the July numbers came in as we expected,” said Eric Starks, President of FTR. “OEM order boards and available build capacity are nearly full through the end of the year. New orders generally slow seasonally during the summer and therefore we would not conclude that July’s data indicates a prolonged slowing in overall order activity.
FTR remains cautiously optimistic that some stronger order activity will return late this year for 2012 delivery. “However, we will certainly be watching for any evidence that recent economic trends are having a negative impact on fleet plans for 2012 and beyond,” said Starks.