August Auto Sales

U.S. auto sales improved substantially in August due mainly to the Cash for Clunkers Program. Overall auto sales for August were up 1% over August of 2008. This is the first month that sales have exceeded 2008 numbers.

It appears that the Japanese and Korean companies have benefited most from the Cash for Clunkers program. Meanwhile sales of luxury cars are still in the dumps with sales down by 30% over last August.

Ford is the American manufacturer sales winner with a 17% increase in sales over last year. GM sales were down 20%, meanwhile Chrysler sales were down only 15%.

• Kia up 60%
• Subaru up 52%
• Hyundai up 47%
• Volvo up 25%
• Ford up 17%
• Mazda up 12%
• Volkswagen up 11%
• Honda up 10%
• Porsche up 9%
• Toyota up 6.4%
• Nissan down 3%
  
• Mercedes down 8%
  
• Chrysler down 15%
  
• General Motors down 20%
• BMW down 25%
• Mitsubishi down 26%
• Jaguar down 33%
• Saab down 68%
  

Ford seems to be the beneficiary of increased sales lately. It appears that the GM and Chrysler bankruptcies have sent a number of customers over to Ford. The following Ford models had material increases in sales Fusion up 132%, Focus up 56%, and the Escape was up 50%.

Other notable increases were posted by the Toyota Prius up 40%, Toyota RAV4 up 42%, Honda Civic up 44% Honda CR-V up 52%, Hyundai Elantra up 116% Nissan Versa up 131%, and the Nissan Sentra up 78%.

August sales were up at a great run rate of 15 million cars annually. So, it appears that consumers had more faith in the future to spend money on high ticket items.

SUMMARY:

This month the Cash For Clunkers program had a substantial impact on auto showroom traffic and sales. The Cash for Clunkers Program may have borrowed sales from future months. We will have to see what the next several months bring.

An interesting trend appears to be developing! Sales of U.S. built cars, both by domestic and foreign manufacturers, appears to be increasing. Even though Toyota sales increased 6%, sales of their domestic built cars increased by 52% meanwhile sales of their imported cars dropped 16%.

June U.S. Auto Sales

U.S. auto sales appear to be improving slightly! They are down from the last year but are only down 28% vs down 39% for the month of May. decline. It appears that the U.S. based automakers are having a rebound in sales with the exception of Chrysler. Sales were the best they have been since the summer of 2008....with a annual run rate of approximately 10 million cars.

Ford and GM sold more cars in June and cut the downward spiral sales for the month. During April, Ford and GM sales were down 11.2% and 33% respectively. An interesting fact is that GM is currently in bankruptcy and the bankruptcy has not impacted sales badly. Meanwhile, Chrysler who just came out of bankruptcy was down 42%.

• Chrysler down 42%

• Mazda down 42%

• Mitsubishi down 42%

• General Motors down 33%

• Toyota down 32%

• Honda down 30%

• Mercedes down 23%

• Nissan down 23%

• Volkswagen down 23%

• BMW down 20%

• Hyundai down 20%

• Ford down 11%

• Kia down 5%

• Volvo up 1%

• Subaru up 3%

Ford seems to be the beneficiary of increased sales lately. It appears that new products were the reason behind the sales increase over May. The Ford Fusion, Ford Flex and the company's hybrids set sales records.

Ford's Fusion set a record of 18,561 cars breaking into the top three mid-size sedan market for the second month since July 2002. The Ford Fusion and Mercury Milan have the best predicted reliability among all mid-size sedans. The Japanese brands have dominated the mid-size segment with the Toyota Camry and the Honda Accord.

June sales were up at a fairly decent run rate of 10 million cars annually. So, it appears that consumers had more faith in the future to spend money on high ticket items.

An interesting anomaly is that sales of Japanese brands continue with the downward spiral meanwhile U.S. manufacturers seem to be improving. We will have to monitor to see if that is a trend that will continue!

Auto Sales for May

U.S. auto sales are still down 39% versus a year ago, which is still a substantial decline. It appears that the U.S. based automakers are having a rebound in sales with the exception of Chrysler. Sales were the best they have been since the summer of 2008....with a annual run rate of 1.1 million cars.

Ford and GM sold more cars in May and cut the downward spiral sales for the month. During April, Ford and GM sales were down 32% and 35% respectively. An interesting fact is that GM declared bankruptcy during May but their sales were up from the prior month. Meanwhile, Chrysler stayed down 47% for both months.

Mitsubishi down 58%
Chrysler down 47%
Honda down 42%
Toyota down 41%
Mazda down 40%
Nissan down 33%
Mercedes down 31%
General Motors down 29%
BMW down 28%
Ford down 24%

Volvo down 23%

Hyundai down 20%
Volkswagen down 16%
Kia down 16%
Subaru down 5%

It appears that new products were the reason behind the twenty percent increase in sales over April. The Ford Fusion, Ford Flex and the company's hybrids set sales records. In addition, two new Lincoln sedans the MKZ and the MKS helped Lincoln post a 2% increase.

Ford's Fusion set a record of 18,321 cars breaking into the top three mid-size sedan market for the first time since July 2002. The Ford Fusion and Mercury Milan have the best predicted reliability among all mid-size sedans. The Japanese brands have dominated the mid-size segment with the Toyota Camry and the Honda Accord.

May sales were up at a fairly decent run rate of 1.1 million cars annually. So, it appears that consumers had more faith in the future to spend money on high ticket items.

An interesting anomaly is that sales of Japanese brands continue with the downward spiral meanwhile U.S. manufacturers seem to be improving. We will have to monitor to see if that is a trend that will continue!

April Auto Sales Reports

U.S. auto sales are still down 34% versus a year ago. That decline was the smallest for 2009 according to Bloomberg. Chrysler was obviously impacted by the negative news, during that month, they they might be filing for bankruptcy.

Chrysler down 48%
Toyota down 42%
Nissan down 38%
BMW down 38%
General Motors down 35%
Mazda down 32%
Ford down 32%
Mercedes down 31%
Honda down 25%
Volkswagen down 16%
Hyundai down 14%


Kesse Toprak, director of industry analysis for auto-research firm Edmunds.com indicated that "We've seen stability in demand, the variable in coming months is how consumers will react to Chrysler." My concern is that with a potential GM bankruptcy looming might also impact sales. I will be monitoring GM sales... since they have the June 1st deadline to submit their new restructuring plans to the government.


April sales ran at an annual pace of 9.3 million units, versus March of 9.9 million units. Sales for 2008 were 13.2 million autos. My take is that these numbers are still down materially....the economy must improve to give people the confidence to buy big ticket items like cars.

March Car Sales Are Up In Parts of The World

Government incentives are having an impact in various areas of the world for the month of March. Most of the increases are due to government programs to increase auto sales. Brazil auto sales are up 17% versus last March, the first increase in six months. Sales also rose strongly in France and Italy, with the decline slowing in Spain. China has just reported and sales are up 25% over last year. Germany has a new car for old car program in which almost a million people have taken advantage.

In Japan, the auto sales dropped 25% from last year, meanwhile Korean auto sales decreased by 19%. U.S. sales are still down substantially but by slightly lower number that in February.

• General Motors down 45%
• Ford down 41%
• Chrysler down 39%
• Toyota down 39%
• Nissan down 38%
• Honda down 36%
• Hyundai down 2%
  

GM is asking for $6 billion in aid from several countries, including Sweden, Germany, Britain and Thailand. German Chancellor Angela Merkel indicated that they need a viable restructuring plan before Germany considers any bailouts.

Many of the manufacturers think that the market may be bottoming and that we could start seeing sales increases by the end of the year. Share prices for the auto manufacturers increased today on speculation that the industry will start increasing sales. Toyota, Honda and Nissan were up 6 - 10% in trading in Tokyo.

Auto Sales Plunge In February

Automobile Sales Plunge Again! The continuing severe sales declines have hit the automakers like a February snow storm. These numbers are the percentage of sales this year versus last year. Consumer confidence has taken a steep decline. Consumers are concerned with the economy, job losses and their ability to make payments. Consumers ability to get loans have also factored in the sales declines.

• General Motors down 53%


• Ford down 48%


• Chrysler down 44%


• Toyota down 40%


• Nissan down 39%


• Honda down 38%


• Hyundai down 2%

Hyundai has limited severe declines in their sales via a creative incentive for its customers. Hyundai will cover a new vehicle's depreciation if customers return a car within 12 months because they are unable to make payments due to a job loss, disability etc. Subaru sales were up 1% mainly due to the Forester model shown below. The Forester doubled in sales over the same period last year.

Even though automakers have spent more money on rebates, low interest rate financing and other incentives, buyers have continued to avoid purchasing new cars.

Many buyers are opting for used cars due to the decline in used car prices over the last year. Althought rising used car prices may change that picture.

GM and Chrysler are have submitted their viability plans to the government. The automobile business is a capital intensive business and severe sales declines impact their ability to operate. The American auto manufacturers are not currently well capitalized. Few businesses can take severe sales declines without a substantial balance sheet and the cash to endure this downturn. These kind of numbers if sustained would be a difficult obstacle to their continued viability.

Automobile Sales Plunge In January

The continuing severe sales declines have hit the automakers like a January snow storm. These numbers are the percentage of sales this year versus last year. Consumer confidence has taken a steep decline. Consumers are concerned with the economy, job losses and their ability to make payments. Consumers ability to get loans have also factored in the sales declines.

• Chrysler's down 55%
• General Motors down 49%
• Ford down 40%
• Toyota down 32%
• Nissan down 30%
• Honda down 28%

There were positive reports from two manufacturers. Hyundai has a creative incentive for its customers. Hyundai will cover a new vehicle's depreciation if customers return a car within 12 months because they are unable to make payments due to a job loss etc.

• Hyundai up 14%
• Subaru up up 8%

GM and Chrysler are required to submit a viability plan to congress by Feb. 17 in order to get additional financial aid from the government. The automobile business is a capital intensive business and severe sales declines impact their ability to operate. The American auto manufacturers are not currently well capitalized. Few businesses can take severe sales declines without a substantial balance sheet and the cash to endure this downturn.