Canada Big-Truck Sales Run Cold Again in February
The segment has not posted a year-over-year gain in sales since September 2012, although last year the big-truck sector did manage to eke out a 1.2% annual increase vs. full-year 2011.
Sales of medium- and heavy-duty trucks in Canada declined for a fifth straight month, as deliveries of Class 4-8 tumbled 19.7% on a daily basis in February.
The segment has not posted a year-over-year gain in sales since September 2012, although last year the big trucks did manage to eke out a 1.2% annual increase vs. full-year 2011.
Fast-forward to February 2013 and big trucks continue to struggle. According to WardsAuto data, the segment last month accounted for 2,537 sales, compared with 3,291 in like-2012. January deliveries were off 12.4%.
February’s setback included a 12.4% decline in Class 8 deliveries to 1,787 from 2,124 in the year-ago period.
PACCAR witnessed the greatest fall among the class, with combined sales of its Peterbilt and Kenworth brands slipping 17.6% to 616 units from 779 last year. Daimler deliveries tumbled 16.1%, as combined sales of its Freightliner and Western Star lines totaled 603 units compared with 749 in like-2012.
Medium-duty sales in February sank 33.1% to 750 units from 1,167 year-ago, driven down by big double-digit declines in three of the four classes.
Class 7 sales ebbed 20.6% to 199 units from 261 year-ago. PACCAR deliveries declined 17.3% to 54 units from 68 last year and International sales fell 55.2% to 43 from 100. The Freightliner brand stood out, however, with sales rising 10.5% to 70 units from 66 in like-2012, and Hino gaining 33.9% to 27 from 21.
Class 6 sales decreased 51.9% to 114 units from 247 year-ago, led by drops at International of 64.6% to 51 sales from 150 and of 50.1% at Freightliner to 35 units from 73.
Class 5 deliveries fell 35.3% to 342 units from 551 in the same period last year. Chrysler witnessed the widest year-over-year disparity on a volume basis, with deliveries down 49.0% to 68 from 139. Ford sales fell 27.3% to 134 from 192 and Hino demand was off 44.0% to 17 from 132.
Sales in Class 4 skidded by a relatively modest 8.4% to 95 units from 108 in like-2012. Ford sales deteriorated the most, down 9.2% to 68 from 78 year-ago, WardsAuto data shows.
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