Trucking news and briefs for Wednesday, July 31, 2024:
Used truck prices tumbled in June
Used Class 8 truck prices took a big hit in June, falling 7.6% from May and 20% from June 2023, according to the latest State of the Industry: U.S. Classes 3-8 Used Trucks report by ACT Research.
The average retail price for used Class 8 trucks in June was $54,300, ACT said.
Used Class 8 retail truck sales were down in June in both volume and price.ACT Research
“We signaled the price drop last month, based on the fact that freight growth remains somewhat elusive,” said Steve Tam, Vice President at ACT Research. “Prices are expected to remain stable at this lower level through 2024, now transitioning to y/y growth in early 2025.”
Tam added that same dealer retail sales also fell for a fourth consecutive month in June. “The 16% drop was counter to the five-percentage-point seasonal gain indicated by history,” he noted. “June is typically about as average a month as can be.”
On the other hand, wholesale sales were up 3.6% from May, “and in normal last-month-of-the-quarter fashion, auction sales swelled 42% m/m,” Tam added. “Combined, the total market same dealer sales volume rose 13% m/m in June.”
Cross-border freight up over 2023 in May
The latest numbers from the Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) show the trend of increasing cross-border freight continued in May.
Trucks moved nearly $91 billion in freight across North American borders in May, up 2% from May 2023.Bureau of Transportation Statistics
BTS reported that total transborder freight in May totaled $138.9 billion, up 2% compared to May 2023. That was driven by a 6.3% increase in freight between the U.S. and Mexico. Freight between the U.S. and Canada fell 2.4% year-over-year.
Trucks moved the majority of cross-border freight in May, totaling $90.9 billion – 2% more than the same month a year ago. Trucks moved $53.1 billion in freight between the U.S. and Mexico, and $37.8 billion in freight between the U.S. and Canada.
Detroit, Port Huron, and Buffalo are the top truck ports for U.S. freight flows with Canada, while Laredo, El Paso, and Otay Mesa are the top truck ports with Mexico.
The top commodities moved across each border by trucks were computers/parts, electrical machinery, and vehicles/parts. For Canada, trucks moved $6.3 billion in computers/parts, $5.4 billion in vehicles/parts, and $2.5 billion in electrical machinery.
Between the U.S. and Mexico, trucks moved $11.8 billion in computers/parts, $11.7 billion in electrical machinery, and $7.6 billion in vehicles/parts.
