Yellow has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, the company announced on August 7 in a company press release. If approved by the bankruptcy court, Yellow would enter into a “debtor-in-possession” (DIP) agreement which would provide the company with the “needed liquidity which will be used to support the businesses throughout the marketing and sale process, including payment of certain pre-petition wages,” according to Transport Topics

Yellow is seeking to restructure its $1.5 billion in debt, $700 million of which is owed to the U.S. government. Yellow has 300 facilities, more than 12,500 trucks and 42,000 trailers.

“It is with profound disappointment that Yellow announces that it is closing after nearly 100 years in business,” said Yellow’s chief executive officer, Darren Hawkins. “Today, it is not common for someone to work at one company for 20, 30, or even 40 years, yet many at Yellow did. For generations, Yellow provided hundreds of thousands of Americans with solid, good-paying jobs and fulfilling careers.”

NACS Daily has been following Yellow’s rough road over the last few weeks between the Teamster strike and the shutdown. Read more about Yellow’s journey here.

While Yellow is closing its doors, North American Class 8 truck orders rose year over year in July for the third consecutive month, according to Transport Topics’ reporting of ACT Research figures.

ACT Research’s preliminary data shows Class 8 orders reached 16,000 in July, which is a 4.5% increase from July 2022 and the largest percentage increase in 2023 so far. Orders for classes 5-7 also rose year over year with 16,600 orders, a 21% increase year over year.

“As represented by seasonal factors, this is the time of year when expectations for orders are low. For both the [medium-duty] Classes 5-7 and [heavy-duty] Class 8 markets, July is the traditional low-water mark for monthly order placement,” said Kenny Vieth, ACT president and senior analyst.