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US car sales crush expectations in August
(Reuters/Reuters Staff)
August car sales were huge.
According to Autodata, auto sales in August hit an annualized pace of 17.81 million units, way above the 17.3 million that had been expected by economists.
Data from Wards indicated that US sales came in at a pace of 17.72 million.
This was the best number in 10 years.
After better-than-expected sales from major US manufacturers and slightly-smaller-than-expected declines from the Japanese majors, auto sales came in way above expectations.
In August, General Motors sales were down 0.7%, less than the 2.6% decline that was expected.
Ford's US sales rose 5.6% in August, better than the 0.2% decline that was expected.
This report also followed Fiat Chrysler, which reported sales in the US that rose 1.7%, beating expectations for a 1.2% decline.
Honda, Toyota, and Nissan, in contrast, saw US sales fall in August, though less than expected.
In a note to clients following the data, Jesse Hurwitz at Barclays said:
"As one of the earliest and most reliable indicators of goods consumption, we take positive signal from stronger-than-expected August vehicle sales. Consumer sentiment has moderated a bit in recent months as financial market volatility and concerns over international growth have increased; however, these data indicate that consumption should hold up despite these factors."
Here's the rundown on US sales in August:
Ford: +5.6% (-0.2% expected)
Fiat Chrysler: +1.7% (-1.2% expected)
GM: -0.7% (-2.6% expected)
Audi: +9.9%
Nissan: -0.8% (-3.9% expected)
Honda: -6.9% (-7% expected)
Toyota: -8.8% (-10% expected)
BMW Group: +2%
Mercedes-Benz: +3.2%
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