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Used Day Cab Inventory Exceeds Sleeper Truck Inventory in Historic First

New Sandhills Global market reports show used day cab truck inventory surpassing sleeper truck inventory for the first time while asking and auction values continue trending down. The market reports cover used trucks, trailers, construction equipment, and farm machinery in Sandhills’ U.S. marketplaces. Pointing to current value trends, Truck Paper Manager Scott Lubischer explains, “Auction values have been falling quicker than asking values for heavy-duty trucks. While this is not uncommon, it’s an important trend to monitor because auction values indicate where the market is heading.”

In the used farm equipment market, the spread between asking and auction values remains elevated and is well above historic highs. Auction prices are falling faster than asking values, most notably within the used combine market. Looking at the high-horsepower (300 hp or greater) tractor market, TractorHouse Manager Ryan Dolezal says, “Inventory is at an unprecedented level. A possible consequence of this inventory surge will be a glut of lower-hour used tractors on the market.”

In used construction equipment markets, inventory levels continued consecutive months of increases in October, with auction values falling faster than asking values. “While it’s not unusual to see asking values lag behind auction values, it is a critical trend for sellers to watch,” says Director of North American Construction Stephanie Olberding. “This is especially true as we head into the end of 2024, as auction prices often indicate the market’s future direction.”

The key metric in all of Sandhills’ market reports is the Sandhills Equipment Value Index (EVI). Buyers and sellers can use the information in the Sandhills EVI to monitor equipment markets and maximize returns on acquisition, liquidation, and related business decisions. The Sandhills EVI data include equipment available in auction and retail markets and model-year equipment actively in use. EVI spread measures the percentage difference between asking and auction values.

Additional Market Report Takeaways

Sandhills market reports highlight the most significant changes in Sandhills’ used heavy-duty truck, semitrailer, farm machinery, and construction equipment markets. Key points from the current reports are listed below. Full reports are available upon request.

U.S. Heavy-Duty Trucks

• In this market, used day cab truck inventory levels surpassed used sleeper truck inventory for the first time, driven by the 5- to 10-year-old heavy-duty truck category. In the overall market, inventory levels were down 2.28% M/M and 10.42% YOY, continuing months of decreases. Unlike day cabs, sleeper truck inventory trends have been declining or steady since January, and inventory has not yet reached pre-COVID levels. Day cabs have also not reached pre-COVID levels, but they’re close and continuing to edge closer as these trends continue. Day cab inventory levels were up 27% YOY in October, while sleeper truck inventory levels were down 31.77% YOY.
• Used heavy-duty truck asking values have been trending down for 25 months. Asking values were down 1.12% M/M and 15.27% YOY in October, with the greatest YOY decrease occurring in the sleeper truck category, down 15.94%.
• Auction values decreased 1% M/M and 18.68% YOY in October and are trending down. Day cabs posted the largest auction value decreases, down 23.5% YOY.

U.S. Used Semitrailers

• In the used semitrailer market, Sandhills noted a shift from an upward trend to a steady trend in October. Inventory levels were down 5.84% M/M and up 8.52% YOY. The flatbed trailer category showed the largest YOY inventory gain, up 28.53%, while the dry van trailer category showed the largest M/M inventory loss, down 8.74%.
• Asking values continued a 26-month-long downward trend, posting decreases of 3.48% M/M and 18.87% YOY in October. Used reefer trailers led the way, down 26.68% YOY.
• Similarly, auction values have been trending downward for 28 months in a row. Auction values dropped 2.27% M/M and 18.12% YOY in October. Used reefer trailers led the way in auction value decreases, as well, with values falling 6.99% M/M and 30.38% YOY.

U.S. Used Medium-Duty Trucks

• Inventory levels in this market rose 1.35% M/M and 5.45% YOY and are trending sideways.
• Asking values have been trending down for 22 months. This continued in October with decreases of 0.33% M/M and 13.93% YOY, driven by the used cab and chassis truck category, down 22.46% YOY.
• Auction values have also been trending down for 22 months. Despite a slight uptick of 0.65% M/M, auction values in this market fell 22.31% YOY in October. Used cab and chassis trucks showed the greatest decrease, down 28.08% YOY.

U.S. Used Tractors 100 Horsepower and Greater

• Inventory levels in this market were up 1.61% month over month and 29.04% year over year in October. These increases were driven largely by high-horsepower tractors; inventory was up 46.54% YOY in that category.
• Rising inventory is continuing to put pressure on values. Asking values were up 0.7% M/M in October but down 3.61% YOY, continuing a six-month-long downward trend. The 175-299-hp tractor category showed the most notable decrease, down 6.69% YOY.
• Auction values have been trending down for seven consecutive months. Auction values were up 1.48% M/M and down 13.77% YOY, with the greatest decrease observed in the high-horsepower tractor segment, down 14.89% YOY. Although asking and auction values are both decreasing, auction values are declining at a faster rate, causing the EVI spread to climb. EVI spread, which measures the percentage difference between asking and auction values, remained historically high for farm equipment at 47% in October. Although this figure is 1% lower than in September, it is still higher than previous peak values observed in 2015.

U.S. Used Combines

• Inventory levels of used combines in Sandhills marketplaces have been declining for several months. This continued in October, with inventory up 7.62% YOY but down 5.73% M/M.
• Asking values ticked up slightly, by 0.8% M/M and 0.9% YOY, in October, but are trending down.
• Auction values were up 0.52% M/M and down 7.99% YOY and are trending down. With auction values falling faster than asking prices, the EVI spread remains high; EVI spread was 56% in October, much higher than the 45% value typically observed in this market.

U.S. Used Self-Propelled Sprayers

• Inventory levels for used sprayers continue to rise and are trending up. Inventory rose 3.66% M/M and 28.38% YOY in October.
• Asking values increased 0.31% M/M and decreased 5.27% YOY, continuing a steady trend.
• Auction values were up 2.83% M/M and down 20.62% YOY in October, continuing a seven-month-long downward trend. The EVI spread remains elevated with auction values falling significantly faster than asking values. Although the EVI spread for used sprayers dropped from 62% in September to 58% in October, it remains higher than the historic peaks observed in 2015.

U.S. Used Planters

• Inventory levels of used planters in Sandhills’ U.S. used marketplaces remained steady in October, decreasing 0.54% M/M and increasing 1.07% YOY. Inventory levels in this market are trending sideways.
• Asking and auction values have been declining for several consecutive months. Asking values fell 1.81% M/M and 10.11% YOY in October and are trending down.
• Auction values dropped 3.31% M/M and 24.07% YOY. With auction value decreases outpacing asking price decreases, the EVI spread for this market rose to 69%, only slightly lower than the historic peak of 72% observed in 2015. 

U.S. Used Compact and Utility Tractors

• Sandhills noted downward trends across the board for used compact and utility tractors. Inventory levels fell 4.95% M/M and 21.41% YOY and are trending down. Less-than-40-hp tractors showed the greatest inventory drops, down 26.51% YOY and 6.82% M/M.
• Asking values decreased 0.17% M/M and 4.38% YOY, marking the tenth consecutive month showing a downward trend. The less-than-40-hp tractor category also stood out in this area, with auction values down 5.25% YOY.
• Auction values ticked down 0.19% M/M and fell 5.86% YOY, continuing an eight-month-long downward trend. Again, the less-than-40-hp tractor category led the way in decreases, with auction values down 2.35% M/M and 8.4% YOY.

U.S. Used Heavy-Duty Construction Equipment

• Inventory levels have been trending up for nine months in a row in this market, which includes crawler excavators, dozers, and wheel loaders in Sandhills’ U.S. marketplaces. Inventory levels dipped 1.85% lower M/M but were 19.26% higher than year-ago levels in October. These increases were primarily driven by the wheel loader category, with inventory up 35.85% YOY.
• Asking values have been trending down for seven months. This continued in October with decreases of 2.36% M/M and 5.82% YOY. Crawler excavator asking values decreased the most YOY with an 8.62% drop.
• Auction values have been falling faster than asking values. Continuing a seven-month-long downward trend, auction values fell 2.15% M/M and 10.29% YOY in October. Again, crawler excavators led these decreases, with auction values dropping 13.68% YOY.

U.S. Used Medium-Duty Construction Equipment

• Inventory levels continued a steady trend in this market, which includes used skid steers, loader backhoes, and mini excavators in Sandhills’ U.S. marketplaces. Inventory levels were down 3.34% M/M and up 26.58% YOY in October. Track skid steers showed the greatest M/M decrease, down 4.12%, while wheel skid steers showed the largest YOY increase, up 35.96%.
• Continuing a downward trend for the seventh consecutive month, asking values ticked up 0.3% M/M but fell 5.34% YOY. Track skid steer asking values decreased the most YOY, down 7.58%. Loader backhoes showed the greatest M/M increase, up 1.92% M/M.
• Auction values have also been trending downward for seven months in a row. Auction values were up 0.36% M/M but down 8.24% YOY in October. The wheel skid steer category showed the greatest YOY decrease at 11.69%.

U.S. Used Lifts

• Used lifting equipment inventory levels were down 2.92% M/M in October but 17.9% higher than year-ago levels. Inventory is currently trending upward. Sandhills noted the largest category increase among telehandlers, with inventory up 50.73% YOY.
• Asking values were up 1.02% M/M and down 6.54% YOY and are trending steady. Used pneumatic-tire forklifts showed the largest decrease, with auction values down 12.1% YOY.
• Auction values posted a marginal increase of 0.07% M/M but fell 10.99% YOY. Auction values are currently steady. The used pneumatic-tire forklift category also led the way with auction value decreases, down 17.06% YOY.

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About the Sandhills Equipment Value Index

The Sandhills Equipment Value Index (EVI) is a principal gauge of the estimated market values of used assets—both currently and over time—across the construction, agricultural, and commercial trucking industries represented by Sandhills Global marketplaces, including AuctionTime.com, TractorHouse.com, MachineryTrader.com, TruckPaper.com, and other industry-specific equipment platforms. Powered by FleetEvaluator, Sandhills’ proprietary asset valuation tool, Sandhills EVI provides useful insights into the ever-changing supply-and-demand conditions for each industry.