Global| Oct 02 2012U.S. Vehicle Sales Reach Recovery High
by:Tom Moeller
|in:Economy in Brief
Summary
Car shoppers were out in-force last month. Unit sales of light motor vehicles during September gained another 3.0% m/m (13.9% y/y) to 14.96M (SAAR) according to the Autodata Corporation. The gain raised sales to their highest since [...]
Car shoppers were out in-force last month. Unit sales of light motor vehicles during September gained another 3.0% m/m (13.9% y/y) to 14.96M (SAAR) according to the Autodata Corporation. The gain raised sales to their highest since March 2008. The latest again beat the Consensus estimate for 14.4M sales, according to Bloomberg.
Auto sales increased 4.2% m/m (24.1% y/y) to 7.69M. Domestic car sales nudged up 0.2% to 5.32M (27.1% y/y) while imports jumped 14.3% (17.7% y/y) to 2.37M. Light truck sales rose 1.8% (4.7% y/y) to 7.27M. Domestic light truck purchases gained just 0.2% (7.0% y/y) to 6.30M but sales of imported light trucks recovered 13.4% (-7.8% y/y) to 0.97M.
Imports' share of the U.S. light vehicle market recovered to 22.3% in September. (Imported vehicles are those produced outside the United States.) That share was down from its peak of 29.9% in Q1'09. The lower foreign exchange value of the dollar played a role as it made imports relatively more expensive. Imports' share of the U.S. car market also recovered to 30.8% but remained down from its 37.8% monthly peak in 2010. Imports' share of the light truck market rose to 13.6% last month, down from its 23.9% peak in early '09.
The U.S. vehicle sales figures can be found in Haver's USECON database.
Okun's Law over the Business Cycle: Was the Great Recession All That Different? from the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis is available here.
| Light Vehicle Sales (SAAR, Mil. Units) | Sep | Aug | Jul | Y/Y % | 2011 | 2010 | 2009 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | 14.96 | 14.52 | 14.09 | 13.9 | 12.83 | 11.58 | 10.38 |
| Autos | 7.69 | 7.38 | 7.13 | 24.1 | 6.29 | 5.79 | 5.45 |
| Domestic | 5.32 | 5.30 | 5.01 | 27.1 | 4.26 | 3.78 | 3.56 |
| Imported | 2.37 | 2.08 | 2.12 | 17.7 | 2.03 | 2.00 | 1.89 |
| Light Trucks | 7.27 | 7.14 | 6.95 | 4.7 | 6.54 | 5.79 | 4.93 |
| Domestic | 6.30 | 6.28 | 6.02 | 7.0 | 5.54 | 4.84 | 3.96 |
| Imported | 0.97 | 0.86 | 0.94 | -7.8 | 1.00 | 0.96 | 0.97 |
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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