Dive Brief:
- New vehicle sales in the U.S. are on pace for a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 15.8 million in 2024, Cox Automotive said in a press release Monday.
- While the seasonally adjusted annual rate was down slightly from the 15.9 million units sold in December, it's about 0.7 million units ahead of January 2023.
- Unadjusted U.S. new vehicle sales increased an estimated 8.3% year over year in January while declining 21.3% from December.
Dive Insight:
Automakers usually sell the most vehicles in December and the least in January, all but guaranteeing declining sales this month.
“January is normally one of the slowest months for vehicle sales, as the December hangover and cold weather keep car and truck shoppers from wandering dealer lots,” said Charlie Chesbrough, senior economist at Cox Automotive, in a statement. “This January will be no exception, compounded by a few large storms and deep freezes across the country, which likely had an additional negative impact on sales.”
However, automakers likely sold more vehicles this month than they did last January due to higher vehicle inventories and larger buyers' incentives, Cox said.
Fleet sales, which increased in December after the United Auto Workers strike ended, will likely boost new vehicle sales this year, according to a press release. Cox says fleet sales will rise 7% in 2024 compared with 2023, outpacing retail sales growth.
