Posted: December 7th, 2022

General Motors reported a 24 percent increase in U.S. sales in the third quarter. Several other carmakers also posted gains.

Consumer demand for new automobiles appears to be holding steady in the United States — at least for now — despite recent interest rate increases, concerns about the broader economy and record-high vehicle prices.

The latest evidence came Monday when General Motors said its new-vehicle sales in the U.S. market increased 24 percent in the third quarter, as higher sales of cars and certain sport-utility vehicles more than offset lower sales of full-size pickup trucks.

The automaker said it sold 555,580 light trucks and cars in the three-month period that ended Sept. 30, compared with 446,997 for the same period in 2021, when production of key components in Asia was constrained.

Supply chain issues have hampered the industry since the start of the pandemic, but G.M. said Monday that its access to computer chips had improved.

Other automakers offered mixed signals about the U.S. new-vehicle market. The South Korean automakers Hyundai and Kia reported record third-quarter sales to consumers through dealerships. Volkswagen sales rose 12 percent in the third quarter, after substantial declines in the first two quarters of 2022.

But Toyota Motor said its U.S. sales fell 7 percent in the quarter, to 526,017 vehicles, despite a surge of 17 percent in September. Stellantis, the automaker formed last year in the merger of Fiat Chrysler and Peugeot S.A., said its third-quarter sales fell 6 percent.

Ford Motor is scheduled to disclose its sales on Tuesday.

Edmunds, an automotive market researcher, estimated that 3.3 million new vehicles were sold in the third quarter, a slight dip from a year ago.

For nearly two years, automakers have been unable to produce as many vehicles as consumers were willing to buy. The manufacturing shortfall resulted from coronavirus-related shutdowns and the chip shortage.

The imbalance of supply and demand has enabled dealers to continue selling almost every new vehicle they receive, even as prices have climbed higher.

Several automakers indicated they expected demand to remain firm, or at least outpace supply. G.M. has taken steps to increase truck production at its plant in Flint, Mich., and reopened a plant in Oshawa, Ontario.

“We’re not seeing any indications demand for our vehicles is softening,” said Jim Cain, a G.M. spokesman. “Overall, the consumer is being resilient.”

Hyundai said that all 528,000 new vehicles it sold in the first nine months of the year had been purchased by consumers at dealerships, and that none had gone to fleet customers, such as corporations, government agencies or rental companies — a rare occurrence in the industry. In the third quarter of 2021, fleet sales made up about 9 percent of its total.

Rising prices, however, remain a concern and could eventually cause some shoppers to defer purchases of new vehicles, said Jessica Caldwell, a senior analyst at Edmunds.

She noted that the average purchase price of a new vehicle in September was $47,257, an increase of 6 percent from a year ago. The average monthly payment on new vehicles rose to $703 in the third quarter, from $630 a year ago.

“At some point, the consumer may not be in the best position to accept these higher prices,” she said.

On Sunday, Tesla said it delivered 343,000 electric cars worldwide in the third quarter. That was an increase from a year ago but short of analyst expectations. “This quarter was nothing to write home about,” Dan Ives, a Wedbush analyst, said in a report.

A U.S. total for Tesla was unavailable because the company does not break down sales by region.

Like most other automakers, General Motors is in the midst of a fundamental transition to electric vehicles. G.M. said it sold more than 14,700 Chevrolet Bolt electric cars in the third quarter, its highest quarterly total ever. The jump in Bolt sales comes after the company lowered prices on the vehicle.

The company said it planned to increase Bolt production next year to about 70,000 cars from this year’s expected output of about 44,000.

In August, G.M. started production at a battery plant in Lordstown, Ohio. Battery packs made there will be used in an electric pickup truck and two electric sport-utility vehicles G.M. plans to introduce in 2023.

Article by: The New York Times