2024-01-03 16:21:08
General Motors retained its crown as the best-selling automaker in the United States in 2023, edging out rival Toyota Motor, as easing supply issues and sustained demand saw the industry see its best year since the pandemic.
The Detroit automaker overcame the impact of a costly auto strike to report 2023 U.S. new vehicle sales of 2,594,698 units, up 14.1% from last year. last year, while Toyota’s annual sales increased 6.6% to 2,248,477 vehicles.
Automakers are expected to have sold a total of 15,499,224 vehicles in the United States in 2023, the highest figure since 2019, when the industry reported sales of 17,044,011 vehicles, according to figures from consultant Cox Automotive.
The resurgence in sales comes following companies ramped up production to meet sustained demand for new vehicles in 2023, although some analysts warn that high interest rates will weigh on demand this year.
“High vehicle prices and high interest rates remain the industry’s Grinch right now, and this trend will continue into next year,” Cox said.
A sign of a drop in demand, car dealers had to offer generous incentives and discounts in December to sell off the oldest stocks, following two years of holding back on promotions.
“This marks the third consecutive year that U.S. consumers spent more than half a trillion dollars on new vehicle purchases,” JD Power said in a report released last month.
Electric vehicles have also captured a greater share of consumers’ wallets. Toyota said Wednesday that sales of electrified vehicles increased 30.4% to 657,327 vehicles, representing 29.2% of its overall U.S. sales.
Total EV sales in the United States are expected to account for regarding 8% of all auto sales in 2023, rising to regarding 10% this year, Cox added. But analysts say high interest rates are also expected to hurt EV demand.
“EV sales are expected to continue to improve, but not at the astronomical pace the industry has seen in recent years,” AutoForecast Solutions said in a report. (Reporting by Nathan Gomes in Bengaluru; Writing by Shinjini Ganguli and Devika Syamnath)
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