Global Light, and Medium and Heavy Commercial Vehicle Outlook, 2021

Growth Strategies to Aid the Market Rebound from Last Year’s Lows Due to COVID-19, with LCV and M&HD Truck Segments Expected to Grow by 10.3% and 5.9%, Respectively, this Year

The trucking industry was not immune to the disruptions in supply chain and falling trade that the global COVId-19 pandemic created. Major markets, such as North America and Latin America, were badly hit, while Europe and India suffered the steepest sales declines. China was the only region to register positive growth across both LCV and M&HD Truck segments in 2020.

Being the first major region to be hit by COVID-19, China bounced back the quickest, by Q2 2020, as it was able to largely control the spread of the disease through strict measures. Besides, the strong support from the government helped the Chinese trucking industry achieve unusually high growth.

The COVID-19 pandemic has expedited a lot of trends that were already taking shape slowly before the pandemic hit. eCommerce and last-mile delivery are expected to grow exponentially as people travel less and work from home more, at least in the short-to-medium term. This is expected to create higher demand for last-mile delivery vehicles, such as panel vans and box trucks.