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May 5, 2014 – Total vehicle sales in April decreased from March's rate of 16.4 million annualized, seasonally adjusted units to 16 million annualized units, according to data published by Autodata Corp. and analyzed by NAFCU's Doug Christman.

"The slight decline in monthly sales follows unusually impressive activity in March after several months of severe winter weather," Christman said in a NAFCU Macro Data Flash report.

Sales levels increased 5.6 percent from a year ago.

Car sales decreased from March's level of 7.8 million annualized units to 7.6 million annualized units in April. Sales of light trucks also decreased from March's level of 8.7 million annualized units to 8.5 million annualized units in April. "Sales of light trucks were up a solid 9.4 percent from a year ago," Christman said.

Five of the six largest automakers reported increases in their year-over-year sales numbers. Nissan reported the strongest gain in sales with 18.3 percent, followed by Chrysler (14 percent), Toyota (13.3 percent), General Motors (6.9 percent) and Honda (1.1 percent). Ford saw a decline of 0.8 percent in year-over-year sales numbers.

"Overall, vehicle sales have been a key driver in the economic recovery and are expected to improve and support the economy throughout the year," Christman said.