Global| Mar 03 2014U.S. Vehicle Sales Remain Under Pressure
by:Tom Moeller
|in:Economy in Brief
Summary
Frigid temperatures may be continuing to discourage car buying. Unit sales of light motor vehicles edged up a scant 0.7% to 15.34 million (SAAR) during February, unchanged year-to-year according to the Autodata Corporation. Sales have [...]
Frigid temperatures may be continuing to discourage car buying. Unit sales of light motor vehicles edged up a scant 0.7% to 15.34 million (SAAR) during February, unchanged year-to-year according to the Autodata Corporation. Sales have fallen 6.5% from the recovery high of 16.41 million in November.
Last month, auto purchases edged up 0.6% to a 7.34 million annual rate (-5.6% y/y). Sales of domestic autos improved 1.4% to 5.19 million (-5.6% y/y). Sales of imports declined 1.3% to 2.15 million (-5.5% y/y).
Sales of light trucks increased 0.7% m/m to 8.00 million (5.8% y/y). Sales of imported light truck sales rebounded 6.9% to 1.01 million (0.2% y/y). Domestic light truck sales, in contrast, slipped 0.1% to 6.99 million (+6.6 y/y).
Imports' share of the U.S. light vehicle market held roughly steady at 20.6% last month. Imports' share of the U.S. car market slipped to 29.2%. Imports' share of the light truck market improved slightly to 12.6%.
U.S. vehicle sales figures can be found in Haver's USECON database.
| Light Vehicle Sales (SAAR, Mil. Units) | Feb | Jan | Dec | Y/Y % | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | 15.34 | 15.24 | 15.40 | 0.0 | 15.55 | 14.49 | 12.78 |
| Autos | 7.34 | 7.30 | 7.73 | -5.6 | 7.77 | 7.42 | 6.23 |
| Domestic | 5.19 | 5.12 | 5.25 | -5.6 | 5.47 | 5.10 | 4.21 |
| Imported | 2.15 | 2.17 | 2.48 | -5.5 | 2.29 | 2.32 | 2.02 |
| Light Trucks | 8.00 | 7.95 | 7.67 | 5.8 | 7.79 | 7.08 | 6.55 |
| Domestic | 6.99 | 7.00 | 6.64 | 6.6 | 6.71 | 6.10 | 5.55 |
| Imported | 1.01 | 0.95 | 1.03 | 0.2 | 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.
More Economy in Brief
