U.S. Light Vehicle Sales Strengthen During January
by:Tom Moeller
|in:Economy in Brief
Summary
- Total sales are highest in nearly two years.
- Light truck sales lead the increase.
- Imported vehicle sales strengthen.
The Autodata Corporation reported that January light vehicle sales rose 19.2% (5.9% y/y) to 16.21 million units (SAAR) after declining roughly 6.0% in each of the prior two months. Sales remain below the April 2021 peak of 18.37 million. Vehicle sales comprise about four percent of real consumer expenditures.
Sales of light trucks rose 22.1% last month (5.7% y/y) to 12.87 million after falling 4.8% in December to 10.54 million units. Purchases of domestically-produced light trucks strengthened 24.6% last month (5.5% y/y) to 9.99 million units after falling sharply in each of the prior two months. Sales of imported light trucks increased 14.3% (6.7% y/y) to 2.88 million after weakening 3.4% in December and 6.1% during November.
Trucks' share of the light vehicle market rose to 79.4% in January, but remained below a 79.7% high in March 2022.
Auto sales rose 9.2% during January (7.1% y/y) to 3.34 million units from 3.06 million in December. Sales have been moving sideways since mid-2021. Purchases of domestically-made autos rose 7.9% in January (13.8% y/y) to 2.31 million units following an 11.2% December decline. Sales of imported autos increased 12.0% (-5.5% y/y) to 1.03 million units after weakening 3.2% in December.
Imports' total share of the U.S. vehicle market fell to 24.1% last month after rising to 25.3% in December. Imports' share of the passenger car market rose to 30.8% last month but remained down from the September 2021 high of 37.9%. Imports' share of the light truck market edged lower to 22.4% in January.
U.S. vehicle sales figures can be found in Haver's USECON database. Additional detail by manufacturer is in the INDUSTRY database.
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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