Car Sales Head For 7th Straight Down Month
DETROIT (AP) - U.S. July as automakers cut back on low-profit rental car sales and consumers waited for Labor Day deals. July was likely the seventh straight month of lower sales. Analysts have been predicting lower U.S. General Motors said its sales fell 15 percent in July, while Ford's sales were down 7.5 percent. Both companies cut sales to rental and corporate fleets. Fiat Chrysler's sales were down 10 percent. Volkswagen's sales were down 5.8 percent, while Nissan's sales fell 3 percent. Honda's sales were down 1.2 percent. In this Wednesday, April 26, 2017, photo, 2017 Buick automobiles appear on display in the showroom at a GMC Buick dealership in Miami. U.S. sales of new cars and trucks were expected to show a decline in July 2017 as consumers pulled back on purchases and waited for Labor Day deals. July likely marked the seventh straight month of declines in a peaking market. At least two automakers bucked the trend.
Toyota's sales rose 3.6 percent while Subaru's were up 7 percent. U.S. new vehicle sales hit a record 17.55 million last year. July's pace would put annual sales at 16.5 or 16.6 million, said Alec Gutierrez, a senior market analyst with the car shopping site Kelley Blue Book. That was lower than he expected, but not enough to change his full-year forecast of 17.1 million sales, he said. Mark LaNeve, Ford Motor Co.'s U.S. U.S. sales, but July was likely a blip and not an acceleration of that trend. He said GM's decision to cut sales to rental-car fleets by 81 percent - or 11,200 vehicles - was a big factor. Ford also cut fleet sales by 26 percent, and it had to stop sales of its Transit commercial van for a few weeks while it performed a recall. Mark LaNeve, Ford Motor Co.'s U.S. Automakers continue to see healthy profits thanks to consumers' preference for SUVs.
34,558, 2 percent higher than the same month a year ago. GM said sales of its recently updated GMC Acadia SUV jumped 30 percent, while Toyota said sales of its RAV4 SUV rose 36 percent to 41,804, a monthly record. But car sales are plummeting, the victim of low gas prices and changing tastes. Sales of the Ford Fusion midsize sedan dropped 42 percent, while sales of the Chevrolet Spark subcompact fell a whopping 82 percent. Automakers ramped up deals in July, a trend that's expected to continue for the rest of the summer as carmakers make way for 2018 models on their lots. Average interest rates on new-vehicle loans fell to a six-month low of 4.77 percent in July as more brands offered zero-percent financing deals, Edmunds said. Toyota, for example, was offering zero-percent financing for 72 months on a 2017 Toyota Camry sedan as the 2018 Camry arrived in dealerships. 200 or so per car in August and September, when automakers typically offer model-year closeout offers and Labor Day sales. General Motors Co. said its sales fell 15.4 percent to 226,107. The automaker saw double-digit percent declines at GMC, Chevrolet, Cadillac and Buick.
Sales of GM's best seller, the Chevrolet Silverado pickup, dropped 15 percent. Toyota Motor Corp.'s sales rose 3.6 percent to 222,057. Toyota and Lexus trucks and SUVs climbed 17 percent but cars struggled. Sales of the Toyota Prius hybrid fell 26 percent. Ford Motor Co. said its sales dropped 7.5 percent to 200,212. Ford's SUV sales were up 2 percent but car sales dropped 19 percent. Sales of Ford's best seller, the F-Series pickup, rose 5.8 percent. Fiat Chrysler's sales fell 10 percent to 161,477. Its Jeep, Chrysler, Dodge and Fiat brands all saw declines, but Alfa Romeo sales were up thanks to the new Giulia sedan. Ram truck sales were flat. Honda Motor Co.'s sales slid 1.2 percent to 150,980. Honda saw the reverse of most automakers: Its Civic small car saw sales rise 11 percent while sales of the CR-V SUV fell 12 percent despite a recent redesign.
