Do you know What the North American Heavy Truck Market is Like?

In 2017, domestic heavy truck sales closed at 1.12 million, and the first time in 2010 exceeded one million, setting a historical record. Coincidentally, the North American market has been quiet for a long time and also ushered in last year. According to data released by the statistics website ACT Research, the sales of North American 8-level heavy trucks in 2017 increased by 59% compared with last year, reaching 296,400 units. In 2016, through the foreign media coverage of the North American truck market, we learned that the North American market situation is not satisfactory, including Volvo, Ford and other large car companies are laying off staff, truck sales fell into a trough. What is the history of US cargo development? And in the next year of 2017, how did the North American market recover?

History of US freight forwarding 

The US freight industry matured earlier, and the retail industry gradually expanded on the basis of the transportation industry. The e-commerce and online shopping businesses only started in the 1990s when the transportation industry was fully mature. 

Studying the history of US freight transportation development, we can see that since the government deregulated in 1980 (before the freight price and cargo transportation qualification were unified by the government to protect the interests of cargo owners and avoid vicious competition), a large number of new freight companies entered this The industry has led to increased competition in the industry. The unit price and profit of the company have continued to decline. Some companies with weak competitiveness have been acquired or bankrupted. The road freight enterprises have rapidly divided into LTL and TL markets. Subdivision.

Nearly two-thirds of the top 100 companies in 1979 shipped out of the rankings in 1989, and these companies either lost their market share or were acquired or went bankrupt. The US economy continues to grow, and the demand for capacity continues to increase. Nearly 80% of transportation is achieved through roads. This part of the lost capacity is compensated by the new capacity to enter the market. These new transportation capacity pays more attention to customer demand, cost changes, adoption of new technologies, and improvement of transportation quality. Therefore, the US transportation market is evolving in the direction of intensification, and on the other hand, the quality of the entire industry is constantly improving. It laid a good foundation for the continuous acquisition and merger of the industry. Since the US freight market was centralized and controlled by the government before 1980, the entire market was relatively standardized. Each company had to report all financial and operational figures to the government on a regular basis. The corresponding legal system and social credit system were relatively complete. After deregulation in 1980, it was not the government that completely disregarded it. The states still have their own control systems. The relaxation of the government is also a gradual process. Therefore, the US freight industry is still developing in a healthy and sustainable manner.

North American Heavy Truck Market

The US highway has already formed a network with a total mileage of about 70,000 kilometers, most of which are two-way six-lane interstate highways. At the same time, North America is the first region in the world to enter economic integration, and cross-border transportation has long been popular. The two major powers of the United States and Canada and Mexico are united in one thousand and thousands of kilometers, forming a huge road transport network. According to statistics, the daily road freight volume of the United States and Canada is worth $1 billion. Canada's annual value of goods shipped to the United States by road is 60%-70% of total exports.

In 2017, with the economic situation in the United States boosted, the real estate and infrastructure industries recovered, and the demand for trucks in the market increased. At the same time, it also showed a rise in freight rates. According to industry data provider DAT Solutions, the spot freight rate for trucks in December 2017 (common rather than refrigerated or flat) reached $1.81 per mile, up nearly 21% from the same period last year. In the second half of 2017, the price wars that truck OEMs have fought for in the market are the main reasons for the recovery of the freight market and even the outbreak of sales triggered by steady economic growth.

New technologies are commonly used on heavy trucks. The latest satellite communication and tracking system allows the company to know where its car is going and even remotely monitor the vehicle's mechanical condition. The work report module enables intelligent vehicle management, and the driver can communicate with the dispatcher at any time. The infrared night vision system increases the distance the driver finds dangerous objects at night by a factor of two. After the buzzer and flashing lights of the rollover warning system are alerted, the car will automatically decelerate. The handling facilities can be adjusted to facilitate the driver of a special status. Efficient exhaust gas purification equipment enables handkerchiefs to be placed on the exhaust pipe, where smokeless ash and odor stick. Drivers and passengers can surf the internet in the car.

In addition, US federal law requires trucks to install ELDs (Electronic Recorder), which controls the driver's travel time by no more than 11 hours by connecting the engine to read the vehicle's travel time route. Therefore, many logistics companies choose to add vehicles to replenish capacity, which is one of the reasons for the increase in truck sales. At the same time, logistics companies will also invest funds to continue recruiting new employees, which also shows that the goods market trends will be more optimistic.

If you find any opportunities in it and want to own a truck of your own, come and pick it on our website!