There remains concern that customers aren't dashing through current snows and to buy vehicles.
It could be a wild sleigh ride later this month, but preliminary data show that the U.S. December new-vehicle retail sales trend is significantly higher than “two-handed” economists predicted, setting the stage for a 2011 comeback for the U.S. auto industry.
December new-vehicle retail sales are expected to come in at 936,300 units, which means seasonally adjusted annualized rate (SAAR) of 10.8 million units, the highest of the year. December retail sales are expected to be up 19% from one year ago.
Retail transactions are considered to be the most accurate measurement of true underlying consumer demand for new vehicles, since discounted fleet sales are at the whim of automakers – historically 21% of the industry and currently at 30% or more at the resurgent buy zolpidem Detroit Three.
“Even with the possibility that sales in the third week of December may be affected by the recent winter storms, the strength in sales during the second week is expected to continue through the rest of the month,” said Jeff Schuster, executive director of global forecasting at J.D. Power and Associates. “As a result, it appears that 2010 will end on a high note.”
Total light-vehicle sales for December are expected to come in at 1,133,000 units, which is 14% higher than December 2009. Fleet sales are projected to decrease in December, with volume expected below 200,000 units—down 3% from December 2009. Fleet share of total sales in December is expected to be at 17%, the lowest level all year.
About Ken Zino
Ken Zino, editor and publisher of AutoInformed, is a versatile auto industry participant with global experience spanning decades in print and broadcast journalism, as well as social media. He has automobile testing, marketing, public relations and communications experience. He is past president of The International Motor Press Assn, the Detroit Press Club, founding member and first President of the Automotive Press Assn. He is a member of APA, IMPA and the Midwest Automotive Press Assn.
He also brings an historical perspective while citing their contemporary relevance of the work of legendary auto writers such as Ken Purdy, Jim Dunne or Jerry Flint, or writers such as Red Smith, Mark Twain, Thomas Jefferson – all to bring perspective to a chaotic automotive universe.
Above all, decades after he first drove a car, Zino still revels in the sound of the exhaust as the throttle is blipped during a downshift and the driver’s rush that occurs when the entry, apex and exit points of a turn are smoothly and swiftly crossed. It’s the beginning of a perfect lap.
AutoInformed has an editorial philosophy that loves transportation machines of all kinds while promoting critical thinking about the future use of cars and trucks.
Zino builds AutoInformed from his background in automotive journalism starting at Hearst Publishing in New York City on Motor and MotorTech Magazines and car testing where he reviewed hundreds of vehicles in his decade-long stint as the Detroit Bureau Chief of Road & Track magazine. Zino has also worked in Europe, and Asia – now the largest automotive market in the world with China at its center.
