U.S. Auto Sales Hit Another High

We continue to find more good news for auto manufacturers–with a few notable exceptions. Overall, it appears as if November hit some great numbers for most of the big automakers, and if the current trends continue it may have been the best November in terms of sales volume since 2001.

Buoyed by Black Friday sales, major automakers are reporting gains almost across the board with Fiat/Chrysler at a 3% gain, Toyota at a 3.4% pick up for light vehicles and a 5.5% pick up for light trucks, Nissan with a 3.8% increase, and GM with a 1.5% increase for light vehicle sales.

On the other hand, Ford sales were basically flat while Volkswagen remains in big trouble due to the continuing fallout from their emission-cheating scandal. The German giant reported sales declines nearing 25%. Honda sales were also down, but they declined at a far more modest rate of @5%.

As we reported back in September, manufacturers are benefitting both from decent sales and from the fact that customers are buying more expensive and profitable vehicles. Low interest rates, a better overall economy, and low gas prices are making the bigger cars, SUVs, and trucks popular once again. That boosts the bottom line since manufacturers achieve higher margins on these types of vehicles.

When we query our systems for the auto industry today, we find the following data on the firms discussed above and a few other top companies: