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“January is usually the second weakest sales month,” Tam said. (Bim/Getty Images)

Used Class 8 truck sales gained ground sequentially and from the prior year during the typically slower start to the year in January.

ACT Research reported that sales increased 5.5% to 24,900 units from 23,600 the prior year and 5.5% sequentially. The average retail sales price decreased 3.5% to $55,308 from $57,310 the prior year, while also declining 3.4% sequentially from $57,235. Average mileage slipped 1% to 411,000 from 415,000 a year ago but rose 4.3% from 394,000 miles the previous month.

“January is usually the second weakest sales month,” said Steve Tam, vice president at ACT Research. “The auction and wholesale markets also both cooled in January. Auction volumes shriveled 56% [month-to-month] in typical first month of the quarter fashion. Wholesale dealer activity was off 10%.”

Mission Financial Services has been experiencing a steady but slow operating environment. The truck and equipment financing company usually goes through a slowdown this time of year, but it is more pronounced now, with activity stagnant across several regions.

“People are still holding on to their money,” said Charles Smith, regional business development and marketing manager at Mission Financial Services. “We are getting applications in. But sometimes they don’t meet your qualification for what you are looking for coming from a finance standpoint, and the ones that are qualified are just sitting back.”

Smith noted that many rejected applications are coming from people new to the trucking industry. Because of this, they’re often unqualified for financial support. This includes the remnants from when the coronavirus pandemic drove a spike in freight demand and new drivers. Many people overpaid for trucks, only to then have prices drop.

“I got a lot of new guys coming into the game, and it’s just that the drive time doesn’t fit what we’re looking for, as well as, from a financial standpoint, it doesn’t fit,” Smith said.

Smith noted that credit is typically what leads an application to be rejected. The company doesn’t base its decisions on credit scores, but it will look at the financial profile of a customer as part of its overall assessment. It also requires a minimum of three years of verifiable driving experience to qualify for help, so the really new drivers are immediately out.

“We have to be very selective with the customers that we qualify,” Smith said. “My underwriting department is very thorough when it comes to that. Again, looking at the profile summary of a customer, they make that determination on affordability, that that’s the key.”

J.D. Power that the year started off positively, with auction and retail pricing up sequentially and from the prior year. It noted the month was typically slow for auction activity, but volumes were still higher than January 2025. The report also found that retail sales per dealership were notably better than the last three years for the second month in a row.

“As 2026 begins, new truck orders suggest pent-up demand is transitioning into replacement and used truck metrics show continued strength,” Chris Visser, director of specialty vehicles at J.D. Power, wrote in the report. “Trucking capacity may be tightening quicker than predicted, which would counteract, to an extent, increased trade volume driven by higher new truck deliveries.”

Visser added that higher freight rates mean increased demand for late-model, low-mileage trucks. He asserted that economic and trade policy uncertainty is the new normal. But he is hopeful freight and equipment metrics will move in the right direction as consumers spend.