U.S. Automakers Drive Sales - Analyst Blog

The light vehicle sales in the U.S. during July rose marginally by 2.2% to 11.54 million vehicles in terms of seasonally adjusted annual rate, driven mainly by strong sales gain experienced by the U.S. automakers. Pickup trucks and luxury cars were the hottest selling vehicles during the month.
 
Sales at General Motors (MTLQQ) inched up 5% to 199,692 vehicles, driven by Buick and Cadillac sales that more than doubled from the last year. Sales at Ford Motor Co. (F) went up 5% to 166,092 vehicles. The automaker’s sales were weaker than expected due to a double-digit drop in its Mercury line. Sales at Chrysler rose 5% to 93,313 vehicles, mainly driven by sales gain of its Jeep and Ram brands.

Sales at both Toyota Motor Co. (TM) and Honda Motor Co. (HMC) fell in July due to unfavorable comparison with the last year’s Cash for Clunkers program that generated significant demand for its vehicles. Sales at Toyota slid 3.2% to 169,224 units while that at Honda dipped 2% to 112,437 vehicles.

Nissan Motor Co. ( NSANY ) reported impressive sales gain compared with its domestic peers. The automaker’s sales increased 14.6% to 82,337 vehicles due to a double-digit rise in sales of trucks and SUVs, including the Titan, Armada, Xterra, Pathfinder and Frontier.

Daimler AG (DDAIF) recorded a 5.5% rise in sales to 18,608 vehicles driven by strong sales of Mercedes-Benz cars and light trucks (7%), offset by sharp decline in sales of the Smart fortwo minicars (60.5%).

Sales at South Korea's Hyundai Motor Co. (HYMLF) escalated 19% to 54,106 vehicles on strong sales of midsize and small sedans including the Sonata and Elantra. Hyundai's sister company, Kia Motors America, recorded a 21% rise in sales during the month, helped by new models such as the Sorento crossover and the Soul hatchback.

The slow U.S. auto sales in July cautioned us of the negative effects of the economic downturn that lingers in the industry. However, automakers are predicting a gradual recovery in the second half of the year. Full-year industry sales are projected to be 11.5 million – 12 million units, an improvement from the historic low of 10.4 million units last year.

 
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