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By Trefor Moss The Wall Street Journal Fri., Oct. 12, 2018 SHANGHAI—Auto sales in China fell for the third straight month in September, as the country’s auto sector confronts what looks likely to be its first yearly decline in passenger-car sales in almost three decades. Fragile consumer confidence in the face of a falling stock market and U.S.-China trade tensions led to weak sales for most auto makers, as Chinese vehicle sales fell 11.6% year over year to 2.39 million (U.S.) in September, the government-backed China Association of Automobile Manufacturers said Friday. That followed declines of 4% and 3.8% in July and August, respectively. Overall, sales increased 1.5% in the first nine months of the year, compared with the same period last year, thanks to a strong performance in the first half. “We underestimated the impact” of China’s slowing economy, said Xu Haidong, the association’s assistant secretary-general. It had … [Read more...] about China’s auto sales face first annual decline in decades
Cincy auto sales
Thai auto sales surge
Of those, 29,888 were cars while 49,318 were commercial vehicles, an increase of 30.6 per cent compared to the corresponding month last year. Vudhigorn Suriyachantananont, executive vice president at Toyota Motor Thailand Co Ltd, said auto companies participating in the Bangkok International Motor Show that ended in early April launched a large number of new models and sales promotions. "The new models introduced gained popularity, while other contributing factors include improvements in Thailand's exports and agricultural product prices," he said. Meanwhile from January to April, auto sales in the kingdom reached 316,299 vehicles, growing by 15.5 per cent. The car market expanded by 13.3 per cent during this period, Vudhigorn said, while commercial vehicles experienced a 16.9-per-cent growth. "Thailand's economy has seen improvement both in exports and tourism, and the large number of new automobile models plus sales promotions from the start of the year has served as contributing … [Read more...] about Thai auto sales surge
Instead of spring bounce, a thud for US April auto sales
Business Major automakers on Tuesday posted lower new vehicle sales in April as consumer demand continued to weaken following a lengthy boom for the industry. 01 May 2018 11:15PM (Updated: 01 May 2018 11:55PM) Bookmark DETROIT: Major automakers on Tuesday posted lower U.S. new vehicle sales in April as consumer demand continued to weaken and competition intensified following a lengthy boom for the industry.Auto sales have been on a bit of a roller coaster ride this year, with a weak performance in February followed by a jump in sales for some automakers in March.Ford Motor Co posted a 4.7-percent decline in sales compared to April 2017, with retail sales to consumers down 2.6 percent. The No. 2 U.S. automaker said sales of its popular pickup trucks were up 0.9 percent, but SUV and passenger car sales were down 4.6 percent and 15 percent respectively.For years, U.S. consumers have been shifting away from traditional passenger cars in favor of larger and more comfortable … [Read more...] about Instead of spring bounce, a thud for US April auto sales
US April auto sales show lackluster start to spring
Business Major automakers on Tuesday posted lower new vehicle sales in April as consumer demand continued to weaken following a lengthy boom for the industry. 01 May 2018 11:15PM Bookmark DETROIT: Major automakers on Tuesday posted lower new vehicle sales in April as consumer demand continued to weaken following a lengthy boom for the industry.Auto sales have been on a bit of a roller coaster ride this year, with a weak performance in February followed by a jump in sales for some automakers in March.Ford Motor Co posted a 4.7-percent decline in sales, with retail sales to consumers down 2.6 percent. The No. 2 U.S. automaker said sales of its popular pickup trucks were up 0.9 percent, but SUV and passenger car sales were down 4.6 percent and 15 percent respectively.For years, U.S. consumers have been shifting away from traditional passenger cars in favor of larger and more comfortable pickup trucks, SUVs and crossovers.But the number of new models vying for a share of that … [Read more...] about US April auto sales show lackluster start to spring
Have auto sales in Canada run out of gas?
Worrisome sign in vehicle salesRecent exuberant reports that Canadian auto sales hit an all-time high in 2017 are not quite the sign of healthy economic growth that this leading indicator at first suggests. After achieving a fifth consecutive record last year, sales should be expected to decline at least modestly in 2018. We can see that from the November and December figures, which each show declines in total sales. And for Ontario’s all-important auto-assembly and auto-parts sectors, the fact that light trucks accounted for a whopping 68.6 per cent of total 2017 sales is not encouraging. Continued strong sales in light trucks — that is, SUVs, crossovers, pickup trucks and vans — are more tied to volatile gas prices than passenger vehicles. The light-truck strength (sales were up 8.7 per cent) does signal robust consumer spending, but what it most powerfully tells us is that business investment is growing, since pickups and vans, in particular, often are fleet … [Read more...] about Have auto sales in Canada run out of gas?