Agencies
US automakers reported mixed US third-quarter sales, pointing to sluggish demand as consumers contend with affordability challenges and wait for lower interest rates to reach the car lending market.
The reports included a bruising 20 percent decline in sales at Stellantis compared with the year-ago period. General Motors experienced a 2.2 percent fall, while Toyota US sales dropped by eight percent.
On the other side, Ford, mustered a 0.7 percent increase, while Honda enjoyed an eight percent rise.
Auto experts have described the 2024 car market as a shift from the seller’s market of recent years.
Vehicle inventories are much more robust than during the pandemic and its aftermath, reducing the pricing power for automakers and reviving some incentive programs dormant in recent times amid lack of supply. But prices are still well above pre-pandemic levels.
The average vehicle price in August was $47,870, down 1.7 percent from the year-ago level, but up 23 percent from the average transaction price in December 2019, according to Kelley Blue Book. Buyers “are still facing affordability issues,” said Charlie Chesbrough, senior economist Cox Automotive.
At GM, sales were mixed among the truck and SUV products that have supported the Detroit giant’s profits in recent years. Whereas GM scored an uptick in sales of GMC Sierra pickup trucks, its top-selling Silverado line experienced a dip.
Chesbrough said the Chevrolet Trax, a compact SUV, is the type of vehicle that has enjoyed growth this year. Sales of the Trax, which begins at $20,400, approached 60,000 during the quarter, up 56.6 percent from the year-ago period.
Smaller pickups allow consumers to “keep the functionality but address the affordability issues,” Chesbrough said.
Ford reported Wednesday that US sales for the third quarter were 504,039, up 0.7 percent from the year-ago period.
The Detroit auto-giant’s sales benefited from a rise in demand for hybrid vehicles, with sales rising 38 percent to 48,101 and outpacing Ford’s growth in electric vehicle sales.
