May new truck sales results bode well for record

Growth across all segments puts truck sales on track for record-breaking first half of the year

With a total of 3,777 units sold in May, new truck sales were up 3.8 per cent on the same month in 2021. This falls just short of the all-time May record of 3,931 units set in 2018 but the year to date (YTD) result of 15,900 is ahead of 2018’s YTD total of 15,739 – putting truck sales on track for a record-breaking first half of the year. 

Heavy-duty 

The heavy-duty segment had a total of 1,274 units sold, up an impressive 224 on May 2021 and bringing the segment to a YTD total of 5,322. 

Kenworth managed a total of 260 units in May – a jump of 45 on April’s total and 79 ahead of May 2021. This brings it to a YTD total in triple figures with 1,122 and, with the new K220 recently being unveiled, things presumably will only get better. Isuzu and Volvo were very close with their May totals, bringing 176 and 170 to the table, respectively. Both saw an increase on April results (144/138) and this puts them on YTDs of 810 and 755. Could Volvo make up the difference in coming months for a run at second place?

Scania, in fourth place, had a result of 120 units in May – a sizeable increase on its April result of 77 and ahead of last May’s 105. UD Trucks and Fuso broke into the 80s in May, with UD in particular showing significant improvement on last May’s result of 44, while Hino saw an increase from April’s 64 to reach 77 in May. Mercedes-Benz recovered its numbers with a total of 70 after a drop last month, with Mack also moving back up with a May result of 63. Of the remainder, Freightliner nearly doubled its May 2021 result with 42, but Dennis Eagle languished with three compared to 21 last year.

Medium-duty

The medium-duty segment managed to beat May 2021’s total by four units, to reach a May 2022 total of 681; up 49 on April. With strong sales at the beginning of the year, this brings the segment to a YTD total of 2,964 – which brings it 261 ahead of the same period last year.

Isuzu maintains a very strong grip on the segment with a May total of 324, which is a huge 60 ahead of April’s total and a 75-unit lead on May 2021. This brings Isuzu to a YTD total of 1,341 – outselling the heavy-duty leader Kenworth. Hino remains in a comfortable second on 195, unthreatened by Fuso on 102, but these results are both down on May 2021 totals (241/140) – in Hino’s case significantly. From there numbers drop sharply to fifth place UD Trucks on 20, up one on April, and Iveco brought the last of the double-digit numbers with 19.

Light-duty

The light-duty segment showed strong growth compared to the same period last year, with a total of 1,329; up 14 per cent on May 2021’s 1,166 units. This brings the sector to a YTD total of 5,766. 

Isuzu again is taking no prisoners with its total of 640 over double that of second place Hino on 302. For Isuzu this is a stonking increase of 116 compared to May and an even more impressive jump of 160 units compared to May 2021, giving it a YTD of 2,371. Hino was slightly ahead of its May 2021 figure of 294, while Fuso saw a significant improvement of 47 units on its May 2021 total to reach 224. Mercedes-Benz retained fourth place with 58 in May, but was down from its April total of 74, while Iveco bumped back up from April’s 26 to reach 40 in May. However, this was a decrease on its May 2021 total of 71.

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