Auto Sales Indicate Strong Recovery - Analyst Blog
06 February 2013 - 3:36AM
Zacks
Auto sales in the U.S. grew 14.2% to 1.04 million vehicles in
January. This translates into a seasonally adjusted annual rate
(SAAR) of 15.3 million units for the year, up about 1 million units
from 2012.
Strong pent-up demand continues to be the key driving factor for
sales growth. Average age of vehicles on U.S. roads increased to
11.3 years from 10.8 years in 2012. The industry should also be
thankful to friendlier banks as they offered greater access to
loans on easier terms and with lower interest rates. Further,
improving job market boosted the consumer sentiment to purchase new
cars.
Most of the major automakers posted double-digit rise in sales.
Toyota Motor Corp. (TM) topped all the automakers
in terms of sales growth. Let us look at the individual automakers’
sales.
U.S. Automakers
General Motors Company (GM) posted a healthy 15.9%
rise in sales to 194,699 vehicles in January, driven by strong
Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra pickup truck sales. Sales of
Chevrolet Silverado soared 32% to 35,445 units while that of GMC
Sierra sales leapt 35% to 12,846 units.
Ford Motor Co.'s (F) sales spiked 21.7% to 165,863
vehicles, driven by impressive sales of all new Fusion sedan,
Explorer sports utility vehicle (SUV) and Escape compact crossover.
Fusion had its best January in its history with sales growing 65%
to 22,399 vehicles. Explorer had its best January since 2005 with
sales of 14,554 units, up 46% year-over-year. Escape established a
January record as well with sales of 19,939 units during the
month.
Chrysler Group – controlled by Italy’s Fiat SpA
(FIATY) – had the best January in five years. The automaker saw a
16.4% rise in sales to 117,731units, driven by strong sales of its
Dodge lineups. Sales of Dodge Avenger sales soared 69% while that
of Dodge Journey crossover SUV almost doubled.
Japanese Automakers
Toyota Motor reported an impressive 26.6% jump in sales to 157,725
vehicles driven by strong sales of Camry and Corolla cars. Sales of
Camry mid-size car rose 12.7% to 31,897 units while that of Corolla
subcompact increased 12.7% to 23,822 units.
Honda Motor Co. (HMC) recorded a 12.8% rise in
sales to 93,626 vehicles led by outstanding sales of its redesigned
Accord. Sales of Accord sprang up 75% to 23,924 units. However,
sales of Civic slid 4% to 21,881 units.
Nissan Motor Co. (NSANY) posted a meager 2.0% rise
in sales to 80,919 vehicles as sales of some its popular models
declined during the month. These popular models include Altima car,
which witnessed a 4% fall in sales to 21,464 units, and Rogue
truck, which recorded a 9.6% decline in sales to 8,951 units.
Other Automakers
Daimler AG’s (DDAIF) Mercedes-Benz reported an
11.1% rise in sales to 23,579 vehicles driven by its impressive
C-Class sedan sales. Sales at Bayerische Motoren Werke AG (“BMW”)
inched up 0.75 to 16,513 units, led by a 56% gain in its X5 SUV
sales.
Volkswagen AG (VLKAY) posted a 6.6% rise in sales
to 29,018 vehicles. It was the company’s best January in the U.S.
since 1974. The mediocre rise in sales was attributable to poor
sales of its popular Jetta sedan, which recorded a 4% drop to
10,522 units. However, sales of another popular model Passat rose
40% to 8,856 units.
Hyundai Motor Co.’s (HYMLF) sales edged up 2.4% to
43,713 vehicles. The marginal rise was attributable to a 24% rise
in Elantra small car sales, partially offset by an 8% decline in
Sonata midsize sedan sales.
Outlook
Strong pent-up demand, easier car finance and improving
macroeconomic conditions will continue to act as a catalyst to
rejuvenate U.S. auto sales to the pre-recession level. Good news is
that improving auto sales will also help the overall economic
recovery in the U.S. being a key industry for growth. Full year
sales are expected to exceed 15 million units compared with 14.5
million units in 2012.
GM expects a 7% rise in industry sales in 2013. Meanwhile, Ford
predicted an 8% gain in the year, which reflects more than
threefold rise compared with the overall economic growth of 2%–2.5%
forecasted by the automaker.
DAIMLER AG (DDAIF): Free Stock Analysis Report
FORD MOTOR CO (F): Free Stock Analysis Report
FIAT SPA (FIATY): Free Stock Analysis Report
GENERAL MOTORS (GM): Free Stock Analysis Report
HONDA MOTOR (HMC): Free Stock Analysis Report
(HYMLF): ETF Research Reports
NISSAN ADR (NSANY): Free Stock Analysis Report
TOYOTA MOTOR CP (TM): Free Stock Analysis Report
(VLKAY): ETF Research Reports
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