Global| Dec 02 2014U.S. Light Vehicle Sales Renew Positive Growth
by:Tom Moeller
|in:Economy in Brief
Summary
Sales of light vehicles improved 5.6% y/y to 17.20 million units (SAAR). Purchases were up 4.5% versus October when they totaled 16.46 million, little-changed from the prior month. Purchases of light trucks recovered 6.3% (9.6% y/y) [...]
Sales of light vehicles improved 5.6% y/y to 17.20 million units (SAAR). Purchases were up 4.5% versus October when they totaled 16.46 million, little-changed from the prior month.
Purchases of light trucks recovered 6.3% (9.6% y/y) to 9.03 million units following a 2.3% October fall. Sales of domestically-produced light trucks improved 6.5% (11.8% y/y) to 7.89 million units while imported light truck sales gained 5.2% (-3.4% y/y) to 1.13 million, recovering most of October's drop.
Auto sales improved 2.6% versus October (1.5% y/y) to 8.18 million units. The gain repeated October's rise. Sales of domestically-produced autos gained 3.4% (8.1% y/y) to 6.08 million while sales of imports were unchanged (-13.7% y/y) at 2.10 million.
The import share of light vehicle sales skidded to 18.8%, its lowest reading since January 2006. Import's share of the auto market fell to 25.7%, down from 34.8% during all of 2010, while the import share of the light truck market held roughly steady at 12.6%.
U.S. vehicle sales figures can be found in Haver's USECON database.
Mixed Signals: Labor Markets and Monetary Policy from the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco is available here.
| Light Vehicle Sales (SAAR, Mil. Units) | Nov | Oct | Sep | Y/Y % | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | 17.20 | 16.46 | 16.43 | 5.6 | 15.56 | 14.49 | 12.78 |
| Autos | 8.18 | 7.97 | 7.74 | 1.5 | 7.77 | 7.42 | 6.23 |
| Domestic | 6.08 | 5.88 | 5.63 | 8.1 | 5.47 | 5.10 | 4.21 |
| Imported | 2.10 | 2.10 | 2.12 | -13.7 | 2.29 | 2.32 | 2.02 |
| Light Trucks | 9.03 | 8.49 | 8.69 | 9.6 | 7.79 | 7.08 | 6.55 |
| Domestic | 7.89 | 7.41 | 7.54 | 11.8 | 6.71 | 6.10 | 5.55 |
| Imported | 1.13 | 1.08 | 1.15 | -3.4 | 1.08 | 0.97 | 1.00 |
Tom Moeller
AuthorMore in Author Profile »Prior to joining Haver Analytics in 2000, Mr. Moeller worked as the Economist at Chancellor Capital Management from 1985 to 1999. There, he developed comprehensive economic forecasts and interpreted economic data for equity and fixed income portfolio managers. Also at Chancellor, Mr. Moeller worked as an equity analyst and was responsible for researching and rating companies in the economically sensitive automobile and housing industries for investment in Chancellor’s equity portfolio. Prior to joining Chancellor, Mr. Moeller was an Economist at Citibank from 1979 to 1984. He also analyzed pricing behavior in the metals industry for the Council on Wage and Price Stability in Washington, D.C. In 1999, Mr. Moeller received the award for most accurate forecast from the Forecasters' Club of New York. From 1990 to 1992 he was President of the New York Association for Business Economists. Mr. Moeller earned an M.B.A. in Finance from Fordham University, where he graduated in 1987. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from George Washington University.
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