Sluggish third-quarter sales for automakers in the United States as consumers became less expensive amid economic and geopolitical uncertainties, but electric vehicles performed well. “The environment for the quarter was up and down and sluggish for US automakers with disappointing consumer demand and interest rates”commented Dan Ives, analyst at Wedbush. “We saw areas of strength on the electric vehicle front but, overall, the quarter was soft (…), marked by a bruised Stellantis and very contrasting figures at Ford”he noted.
Ford is the only one of the three major historic American manufacturers to post an increase over the quarter, but marginally (+0.7%, to 504,039 vehicles). Sales fell by 20% over one year at Stellantis (305,294 vehicles) and by 2.2% at General Motors (659,601 vehicles), which however did better than analysts’ expectations. “We continue to take the necessary steps to attract sales and prepare our dealer network and customers for the arrival of the 2025 models”commented Matt Thompson, United States sales manager for Stellantis (Jeep, Ram, Chrysler, Dodge, Fiat, Alfa Romeo).
The big three from Detroit (Michigan) were nevertheless able to welcome sales of electric and hybrid vehicles. “Customers continue to have a preference for hybrid engines during the summer months”noted Ford, which sold 23,509 electric vehicles (+12.2% over one year) and 48,101 hybrid vehicles (+38%). According to its publication on Tuesday, General Motors sold 32,000 electric vehicles during the quarter (+46%). Thus becoming the second seller of electric vehicles in the United States over the quarter and since the start of the year (70,750, compared to 67,689 for Ford), behind the specialist Tesla.
“Good direction”
The latter, which only publishes its global performances, announced on Wednesday deliveries in line with forecasts with 462,890 vehicles handed over to their owners in the third quarter. “This figure can be described as good and moving in the right direction but, clearly, the markets were hoping for a figure 3,000 to 5,000 higher.” vehicles, note Wedbush analysts, to explain the share’s decline of more than 5% on the New York Stock Exchange.
“Overall this is a marked improvement on the first half and we believe the 1.8 million target for the year remains crucial and a big pet peeve”they continue. “Almost all vehicles will be purely electric in the long term. Combustion vehicles will be a niche, like horses”posted Elon Musk, boss of Tesla, on Wednesday on X, commenting on a message mentioning the fact that sales of electric vehicles were now the majority in Norway.
According to Kelley Blue Book, the average price of a new vehicle in the United States remained lower year-on-year for the eleventh consecutive month in August, at $47,870 (-1.7% year-on-year and -0.6% year-on-year). one month). “Higher inventories continue to add pressure to the market”with promotions having represented an average of 7.2% of the final price in August, noted the specialist, a subsidiary of Cox Automotive. Consumers “still have affordability issues. The reduction in interest rates (by the American central bank, Editor’s note) will help”anticipated Charlie Chesbrough, economist at Cox Automotive.
Which can explain, according to him, the success of compact vehicles, whether SUVs, cars and even pick-ups “which keep their functionality while having an affordable price”. He also noted that sales traditionally decline ahead of a presidential election, catching up once the uncertainty has passed. But certain positions of Donald Trump, notably on self-regulation and the fight against climate change, add to concerns.
Foreign manufacturers experienced mixed fortunes over the quarter. Sales of the Japanese group Honda increased by 8% to 366,214 vehicles, marked by a decline of 6.7% for automobiles and a jump of 15.7% for pick-ups. Those of its compatriot Toyota, on the other hand, fell by 8% to 543,872 vehicles, more than half of which were electrified (100% electric and hybrid) with a jump of 38.6% to 255,863.
