The 48th annual ATD Convention and Expo runs April 15-18 at the Phoenix Convention Center.
"Our industry has taken many punches," added Treadway, a third-generation dealer and president of Kenworth Sales Co. in Salt Lake City. "In addition to the economic downturn, we've had to weather a series of regulatory changes that magnified the ups and downs of our already cyclical business."
Treadway highlighted five sectors of commercial truck retailing that indicate an economic recovery is underway for 2011: Rising freight volumes, used truck demand and prices, improving parts and service business, new truck orders, and seasonal rentals and leasing up over normal seasonal declines.
"The economic recovery is not a sure thing, and could be easily derailed by volatile fuel prices, an unpredictable regulatory environment, international political upheaval and global disasters," Treadway cautioned. "We need to rebuild inventories, shore up our cash flow, review wage rates and sell some trucks."
