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Resource Center » U.S. & Intl Recaps | Release Dates | Why Investors Care | Today's Calendar
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Unit sales of domestically produced cars and light duty trucks (including sport utility vehicles and mini-vans). Individual manufacturers report usually report sales on the first business day of the month. Motor vehicle sales are good indicators of trends in consumer spending. Why Investors Care
| Released on 1/4/05 For Dec 2004 | |||||||||||||||||||||
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Highlights
Motor vehicle sales jumped 13.1 percent in December to a 14.7 million unit rate after selling at a slower pace in the past several months. Even though sales are adjusted for seasonal variation, it isn't unusual for sales to pick up steam in December; we saw the same pattern last year.
Domestic cars were sold at a 5.9 million unit rate in December, up significantly from November's 5.1 million unit pace. While GM sales posted a healthy gain for the month, they were down sharply from a year ago. Ford sales were up only slightly from year ago levels. However, Chrysler, Honda, Nissan, Toyota and Subaru all posted hefty double digit gains over last December.
Light trucks were sold at an 8.8 million unit rate, up from a 7.8 million unit rate in November. GM and Ford posted year-over-year declines, as did Suzuki, Mercedes, Mitsubishi and BMW. Chrysler posted a moderate gain over last December's sales. Honda and Nissan sales surged compared to a year ago. Toyota and Mazda did okay.
Last year, motor vehicle sales surged in December and then fell off again in the first four months of the year. Special incentives bring in the customers, but normal prices often don't.
Motor vehicle sales fell 1.5 percent in November with domestic auto sales running at a 5.1 million unit rate and light truck sales running at a 7.8 million unit rate. The November selling pace for domestic light trucks was the slowest since June.
Light truck sales Consensus Forecast for Dec 04: 8 million unit rate
Range: 7.7 to 8.5 million unit rate
Auto sales Consensus Forecast for Dec 04: 5.2 million unit rate
Range: 5.1 to 5.2 million unit rate
![[Chart]](chart.gif)
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Motor vehicle sales remained in the same range in 2004 as 2003. Consumers continue to buy more SUVs than cars: note the share of light trucks (as a percent of the total) increased in 2004 despite rapidly rising gasoline prices. |
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