Car sales for November came in at a higher-than-expected 15.54 million units, which represents a 8.7% increase from October and a 14.7% increase from November of last year (see chart). Here are some other highlights:
1. November car sales were the highest for any month since January 2008, and the highest for the month of November since 2007.
2. On a year-over-year basis, the 14.7% increase in November car sales marked the 27th straight month of an annual sales increase starting back in September of 2010.
3. Year-to-date through November, car sales this year are running 14% ahead of last year.
4. Auto sales for Honda, Hyundai, Nissan and BMW set new all-time record highs for the month of November.
5. Compared to last year, sales in November were especially strong for foreign automakers Subaru (59.7%), Honda (38.9%), BMW (38.7%) and VW (28.2%). Chrysler led the Big Three with a 14.4% sales gain, its best November sales since 2007.
Related: Gallup reported today that Americans’ economic confidence was higher in the month of November than in any month since the polling organization started tracking daily economic confidence in January 2008. That might help explain the strong car sales for November.
1-BY FAR THE OLDEST AUTO FLEET IN AMERICAN HISTORY–THE AVERAGE CAR ON THE ROAD IS NOW AN OLD CLUNKER
2-SANDY KOd THOUSAND OF VEHICLES THAT NEEDED REPLACEMENT
3-LOWEST FINANCE COSTS ON RECORD
4-NEARLY 4-YEARS INTO AN ECONOMIC RECOVERY
Combine all of that and the pop in unit sales is no BFD at all.
I have to agree with our friend above. And old fleet. A bigger population. The availability of cheap loans to subprime borrowers at more than 100% of the vehicle value. All of these factors lead to a pop in sales. The trouble is what happens when demand is satisfied among the most desperate and companies like GM have to figure out how to dump all of that inventory on the market. Eventually profits will collapse and the auto industry will be in the same place as it was last year. The cure is the liquidation of the bad companies but given the trend towards bailing out the incompetent I doubt that we see such an event until the bond market speaks.
Almost all auto manufacturers are showing record sales… including Audi.
http://news.investors.com/newsfeed-marketwire/120312-141406804-record-setting-november-sales-push-audi-to-new-all-time-yearly-high.aspx
November was a good month for auto sales…
Chevy Volt is a fly in the ointment though…
Interesting calculation by Brian Wesbury
Yeah, I would generally agree with that analysis. Maybe not quite as optimistically in the short term as he, but in general, yes.
Finally had some time to analyze the numbers.
Retail Sales in November did grow at an unusually fast pace from October (it was the 12th strongest October to November rise on record). I suspect Hurricane Sandy had a lot to do with this.
Even when correcting for Sandy, the long-term trend in this market remains overtly positive: annual Sales (non-seasonally adjusted) total 14.4 million units, a gain of 13.4% above last year. The pace of rise appears to have reached a peak, and will begin diminishing in early 2013. Given this market’s relationship to leading indicators, it should have at least another 2-3 quarters of growth.