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Vehicle sales rise in July, marking two straight months of growth
Total vehicle sales rose from 13 million annualized units in June to 13.3 million annualized units in July, marking the first time this year that vehicle sales have risen for back-to-back months. NAFCU Chief Economist and Vice President of Research Curt Long analyzes the data in a new Macro Data Flash report.
“According to J.D. Power, the average new–vehicle transaction price fell slightly on the month but still hovers around $46,000, while incentive spending reached a record low during the month," Long added.
Car sales rose to 2.8 million annualized units last month, and light truck sales rose from 10.3 million annualized units to 10.6 million.
Domestic production in July was up 11.8 percent from the same month in 2021. Inventory increased slightly to 0.56 months of sales in July.
"Ford is reporting improving inventory conditions, but Honda and Toyota are still struggling,” added Long.
“Persistent affordability issues mean that auto sales will remain muted and volatile over the rest of the year, as relief from supply shortages looks increasingly unlikely in 2022 and many car buyers are turned off by higher rates and recessionary concerns,” Long concluded.
For more up-to-date economic insights from NAFCU's award-winning research team, view NAFCU's Macro Data Flash reports.