Americans continued to flock to sport utility vehicles and pick-up trucks, but they are driving away from passenger cars and hatchbacks, top US automakers reported Thursday.
US car sales, which dropped 2% last year from a record high of 17.55 million in 2016, are expected to slide further in 2018, hurt by rising interest rates.
America’s No 2 automaker, Ford Motor Co (NYSE:F), which is gradually phasing out production of most passenger cars in the US, said total sales fell 3.9% to 192,616 vehicles, hurt by lower passenger car demand. The one bright spot for Ford was SUV sales numbers which in October shot up 6.7% to 67,554 SUVs.
Smaller rival Fiat Chrysler's Jeep brand continued its hot streak as buyers flocked to its SUVs. The brand posted an overall 8% sales increase on higher demand for its Jeep and Ram vehicles to 72,800 vehicles.
READ: General Motors blows past Wall Street's 3Q estimates and predicts robust performance will continue
General Motors Co (NYSE:GM) no longer reports monthly sales figures and instead releases results on a quarterly basis. The Detroit automaker reported strong truck sales Wednesday and a 4% jump in Cadillac sales in China which boosted its third-quarter profit.
General Motors says it sold fewer vehicles during the third quarter — but at higher prices — helping the automaker deliver a better-than-expected earnings report. It said it sold fewer cars but was able to raise its prices in the US by about $800 per vehicle to more than $36,000, setting a record for transaction prices and about $4,000 over the industry average.
Nissan Motor Co Ltd’s (OTCMKTS:NSANY) total passenger car sales toppled 23.5% led by a dramatic slowdown in demand for the Altima sedan, once Nissan's best-selling vehicle.
Contact Uttara Choudhury at uttara@proactiveinvestors.com
Follow her on Twitter: @UttaraProactive