Steel Markets
July 20, 2014
NAFTA Light Vehicle Production for June
Written by John Packard
U.S. light vehicle sales beat expectations again in June by surging to 17.0 million units at a seasonally adjusted annual rate, (SAAR). This was the best performance since mid-2006. All of the improvement was in auto sales which increased from 8.1 to 8.3 million SAAR. Light truck sales were flat at 8.7 million. Pent-up demand, easier access to credit, and an improving job market have fueled sales. Light vehicles are autos and light trucks (GVW Classes 1-3, under 14,001 lbs.). Crossovers are classified as light trucks which considerably swells that sector’s sales and production numbers.
Sales increases were strong across all the major manufacturers. The Detroit three were up by 8.9 percent year over year led by Chrysler, up by 18.2 percent. The European manufacturers were up by 7.6 percent led by Audi up by 33.3 percent, VW was down by 15.5 percent. The Asian companies were up by 10.7 percent with a wide range of performance. The largest Asian presence, Toyota was up by 11.9 percent at 201,000 units. This puts Toyota in third place for US sales behind GM and Ford.
