The U.S. Department of Commerce has imposed preliminary antidumping duties on dry van and refrigerated trailer imports from Canada and Mexico, though the rates are substantially lower than the levels three U.S. trailer manufacturers had requested. The determination follows a November 2025 petition filed by Great Dane, Stoughton Trailers and Wabash, which argued that foreign-built trailers were being sold in the U.S. market below fair value.
Commerce set preliminary dumping margins far under the 223 to 297 percent range sought against Canadian exporters and the 209 to 432 percent range sought against Mexican exporters. Most Canadian manufacturers received a 4.29 percent rate, with Collins Manufacturing and Gincor Werx assigned 44.86 percent. Among Mexican manufacturers, Utility Trailer Manufacturing de Mexico received the lowest rate at 3.21 percent, while several companies including Gallegos Trailers and Industrias Kuzzy de Mexico were assigned 79.92 percent.
Utility Trailer Manufacturing President and COO Steve Bennett said the measures could extend delivery lead times and raise prices for carriers at a time when trailer demand is climbing. The company operates dry van plants in Arkansas and Virginia, refrigerated trailer plants in Utah and Virginia, and a flatbed plant in Alabama.
Trailer orders have swung sharply in 2026, with April orders up 126 percent year over year and May orders up 237 percent before a June pullback, according to ACT Research data cited in the report. Wabash CEO Brent Yeagy told investors in late July that the freight market recovery had shifted trailer demand in a way not seen in decades.
A final determination in the case is expected around December 16, 2026. An investigation into Chinese-origin trailer exporters, filed alongside the original petition, remains ongoing.
Source: Transport Topics -- https://www.ttnews.com/articles/canada-mexico-trailers