Vocational Truck Prices Up 44%: Ritchie Bros.

Feb. 21, 2022

Soaring demand for truck tractors and other transportation assets caused unprecedented price acceleration in the trucking sector last year, according to Ritchie Bros. February Market Trends Report.

Mitigating factors such as port congestion, Covid-related reduced workforce capacity, and continued driver shortages have hampered the industry’s ability to transport goods, while manufacturers faced headwinds producing trucks and meeting demand. For example, the volume of truck tractors (tandem axle) sold in 2021 was 37 percent lower than 2020 levels, according to the report, from more than 17,800 to more than 11,100 trucks.

The February 2022 Market Trends Report highlights sales of truck tractors, van trailers, pickup trucks, van trucks, flatbed trucks, mechanic trucks, water trucks, dump trucks, lowboy trailers, stepdeck trailers, and heavy haul trucks.

“We attracted a record number of bidders in 2021, resulting in the strongest pricing we have ever seen,” said Doug Olive, SVP, in a prepared statement. “Truck tractor pricing at the end of the year was up 65 percent year over year while vocational trucks were up 44 percent in the U.S. It’s a seller’s market and consignors around the world are taking advantage by turning their surplus trucks and trailers into cash.”

Said Doug Rusch, managing director of Rouse Sales, in a statement:

“In mid to late 2020, used equipment pricing started to increase, and since then, we’ve seen a steady uptick in values month-in and month-out. Since January 2019, auction values for used truck tractors are up 77 percent and vocational trucks up 27 percent. The retail channel has also shown improvement for truck tractors, up 38 percent since January 2019.”

Source: Ritchie Bros.