Navistar International Corp reported that growth in non-traditional vehicle markets is paying off. Total first quarter worldwide shipments were flat despite a 6 percent decline in Class 6-8 commercial truck and school bus shipments in the United States and Canada brought about by a mid-cycle correction coupled with the end of the 2006 pre-buy.
Worldwide shipments of Class 6-7 medium trucks, Class 8 heavy trucks and non-traditional vehicles, and school buses for the three months ended Jan 31, 2007, totaled 27,500 units. This is down 0.4 percent from the 27,600 units shipped in the same period a year earlier.
Shipments of Class 6-7 medium truck, Class 8 heavy trucks, and school buses in the United States and Canada in the first quarter totaled 22,400 units. This figure is down 6.4 percent from the 24,000 units shipped in the first quarter of 2006.
Navistar's engine facilities shipped a total of 104,000 units during the quarter, down from 123,100 units a year earlier.
The company has not changed its previously announced forecast of industry volume for the United States and Canada for its fiscal year ending Oct 31, 2007. It is anticipated that sales of medium and heavy trucks and school buses will range from 325,000 to 347,000 units, which would represent a decline of between 24 percent to 28 percent from the record 454,500 units sold in fiscal 2006.