In a news that did not surprise analysts, US auto sales in October has fallen by an estimated 6 percent. Some automakers have already reported their sales. What's even more alarming is the fact that consumers were provided with more discounts. However, this did not seem to dampen the continuous decline of US auto sales this year.
According to Reuters, an auto industry publication WardsAuto shared that sales may be at $17.9 million on a seasonally adjusted annualized rate.
The October Sales For Automakers
The fate of General Motors Co is like the other automakers. Its US auto sales for October fell by 1.7 percent. GM's sales of its smaller pickups and big SUVs went up. However, its sedan sales suffered a blow.
Fiat Chrysler Automobiles is not an exception. According to Forbes, its sales fell 10 percent that amounts to 176,609 vehicles. There has been fewer Jeep and Dodge cars that were sold. This is contrary to its Ram brand that had an increase in sales. The reason behind Ram's 7 percent gain is its pick-up truck.
Honda Motor Co's sales decline is better than FCA. It only fell 4.4 percent. There were able to sell 5,000 more trucks and SUVs than cars. The sales of its fellow Japanese automaker Toyota Motor Corp was down to 8.7 percent in October.
Reuters further reports that Nissan's sales fell 2.2 percent. Apparently, the 13 percent rise of its SUV and pickup truck sales were not enough.
Ford Is Yet To Report Its Sales For October
While other automakers have reported their sales, Ford was evidently missing. It has yet to release its sales for October. Forbes reported that the automaker has delayed it until later this week. This might have been caused by a fire at its Detroit headquarters.
According to CNBC, analysts are expecting a decline of 9 to 11 percent from a year ago. Ford had a 15 percent of sales through September.
A Dismal Year For The Automotive Industry
The year of the automotive industry in 2015 had been great. However, this year does not seem to reflect the said success. A possible factor may be the fewer selling days for October 2016.
Nissan's brand sales US Vice President Judy Wheeler remained positive. She said that favorable economic factors point to strong sales in the remainder of this year. Wheeler added that the annual sales for 2016 will likely be a bit below than 2015's record vehicle sales, according to Reuters.
