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☆ U.S. new vehicle sales expected to have struggled during third quarter
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-26 | by ( Michael Wayland | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

DETROIT — U.S. sales of new vehicles are expected to have struggled during the third quarter amid economic and political uncertainties, as well as elevated interest rates and prices, according to industry forecasters. Sales are expected to fall roughly 2% during the third quarter compared with the same time in 2023, to about 3.9 million vehicles sold, according to Cox Automotive and Edmunds.com. That would be a roughly 5% decrease compared with the second quarter of this year. "2024 has been a volatile year for the new vehicle market, and more of the same is expected in Q4," said Charlie Chesbrough, Cox Automotive senior economist. Both Cox and Edmunds expect light-duty U.S. vehicle sales to total about 15.7 million vehicles in 2024.

Persons: Charlie Chesbrough, Cox, Edmunds, Jessica Caldwell Organizations: DETROIT, Cox Automotive, Federal, CNBC Locations: U.S

☆ Auto insurers are raising rates, even as car prices ease. 'The pandemic has been really disruptive to the auto repair business,' economist says
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-16 | by ( Greg Iacurci | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

About a third (31%) of U.S. auto insurance customers say they experienced a rate increase during the past year, according to a recent study by J.D. Many factors have conspired to push up the cost of car repairs, which ultimately feeds through to insurance prices, economists said. "The pandemic has been really disruptive to the auto repair business," he said. Auto insurers lost 12 cents on each dollar of customer premiums paid in 2022, on average, according to J.D. Vehicle prices moderate after pandemic-era surgeFurther, vehicle prices began rising at a rapid clip in the first half of 2021.

Persons: Mark Zandi, Power, Zandi, Charlie Chesbrough, Chesbrough Organizations: Moody's, U.S . Department of Transportation, Auto, Cox Automotive, U.S . Federal Reserve Locations: ., U.S

☆ Automakers find a tax credit loophole to increase EV leasing and boost sales
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-13 | by ( Michael Wayland | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

Buying a used Ioniq, which is produced in South Korea and Indonesia, wouldn't earn him $7,500 off through a federal tax credit. "I ran the numbers — what it would be without the leasing credit and with the leasing credit — and that kind of put me over the top and that was the main thing of why I went in that direction," he said. For a $50,000 EV and a 36-month lease, Chesbrough estimates the full $7,500 tax credit equates to $222 in monthly savings for a consumer. "It also allows them to level the playing field against competitors who get the full tax credit when purchasing." I wouldn't call it leveling the playing field," Watson said of leasing qualifying for the $7,500 tax credit.

☆ Used vehicle prices fell last month for the first time in 2023
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-05 | by ( Michael Wayland | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

DETROIT – Wholesale used vehicle prices declined last month for the first time this year, as automakers increase production of new cars and trucks. The costs and scarcity of inventory led consumers to buy used vehicles, increasing those prices as well. Further declines could help bring used vehicle pricing down for consumers, since retail prices traditionally follow changes in wholesale prices. Used vehicle prices have increasingly become a point of interest for investors and the Biden administration as a barometer for easing inflation. The administration early last year blamed much of the rising inflation rates in the country on the used vehicle market.

☆ People aren't leasing cars anymore — and it means higher prices and worse choices for used car-buyers
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-19 | by ( Alexa St. John | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Vehicle leasing was down almost 50% last July, compared to January 2020. That means less supply going to the used vehicle market, keeping prices up and inventory low. What that means for used car pricesThat all means there will be fewer, low-mileage yet newer vehicles headed to the used market. Fewer used vehicles in the market, but with the same amount of demand, will keep used vehicle inventory low and their prices relatively high. Used vehicle prices have been up for several months now, and are just starting to creep downward, with the average cost at $27,143 in December, per Cox.

☆ The fallout of the pandemic will keep inflating used car prices for years
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-18 | by ( Alexa St. John | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

For more than two years, car-buyers faced low vehicle inventory and high new and used car prices. "All of this really means that the normal supply feeds into the used vehicle market are down substantially," he said. "This is going to have huge ramifications for the used vehicle market over the next couple years." Car-buyers face challenges in the used vehicle spaceUsed vehicle prices have been through the roof for some time. Leasing changes aren't the only impact on the used car marketThis decrease in recently turned-in leases as used inventory isn't the only shift.

☆ Car makers like Ford and GM are increasing loan payments, while some rivals are keeping costs down
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-15 | by ( Alexa St. John | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Between March 2020 and December 2022, average monthly loan payments jumped about 29%, according to Dealertrack data Chesbrough shared. "Not everybody has risen their monthly payments in quite the amount." Alfa Romeo, Mini, Subaru, Jaguar, Audi, Kia, Mercedes-Benz, Infiniti, Toyota, and Genesis, made up the 10 brands with the lowest increases in their average monthly loan payments over the same period. Toyota was one of the 10 brands with the lowest increase in their average monthly loan payments since the pandemic began. "We think that there's really not going to be enough demand there at these high prices," Chesbrough said.

High interest rates, supply chain problems and recessionary fears were among the major challenges for the global automotive industry in 2022. Auto sales could still riseUnlike traditional downturns or past periods when demand was soft, most analysts expect global and U.S. auto sales to rise in 2023. Cox Automotive is forecasting U.S. new vehicle sales of 14.1 million in 2023, which Charlie Chesbrough, Cox's senior economist and senior director of industry insights, described as "tepidly optimistic." S&P Global Mobility expects new vehicle sales globally to reach nearly 83.6 million units in 2023, a 5.6% increase from the previous year. US consumers are hunkering down, and recovery towards pre-pandemic vehicle demand levels feels like a hard sell.

☆ New cars are finally back in stock — but Americans might not be able to afford them
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-07 | by ( Michael Wayland | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Mario Tama | Getty ImagesDETROIT — New cars are slowly becoming more widely available, as supply chain bottlenecks finally start to ease. But now, an increasing number of Americans might not want them or be able to afford them. With the Federal Reserve aggressively hiking interest rates to fight inflation, consumers are finding that the cost of financing a new car is suddenly a lot higher than it was even earlier this year. That means many Americans may no longer to be able to afford the new cars that are starting to arrive on dealer lots. That, combined with rising interest rates, is pushing more car shoppers to look at used vehicles.

☆ U.S. auto sales to fall in April on tight inventories, rising rates - data (April 27)
▼ + stars: | 2022-04-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

April 27 (Reuters) - U.S. new vehicle sales is expected to fall in April, as low inventories and rising interest rates boost prices amid high demand, consultants J.D. U.S. retail sales of new vehicles in April could fall 23.8% to 1.1 million units from a year earlier, according to a report released by the consultants on Wednesday. read moreResearch firm Cox Automotive also forecasts April sales volume to fall 1.7% from March on tight inventories and adds that conditions would likely not improve in 2022. They also added the global forecast for light vehicle sales has now slipped to 81.7 million units in 2022, down 900,000 units from last month. Total new-vehicle sales for April 2022, including retail and non-retail transactions, are projected to reach 1.2 million units, a 21.5% decrease from last year.

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