Another year-over-year decline in the automotive industry. This April wasn’t that successful as automakers and dealerships wanted them to be, and this is why we have such low car sales predictions. Declines will be broad-based, with General Motors, Ford, Fiat Chrysler and all other major automakers expected to report lower sales.
Meanwhile, Tesla shares soared to a record high Monday ahead of the electric vehicle maker's earnings Wednesday. April auto sales will likely come in at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 17.1 million, down 1% vs. a year earlier. But that would be an improvement from March's 16.5 million. After seven straight years of sales growth, the industry is facing a gradual slowdown in 2017. Inventories are high, especially for out-of-favor sedans and small cars, as consumers resist the bait of higher incentives and easy credit.
Analysts estimated that 3.6 million used vehicles will be sold in April, vs. 3.4 million in March, in a sign of growing consumer interest in pre-owned cars and trucks in a damp retail climate. Used-car pricing has been weak, making pre-owned cars relatively more attractive vs. new vehicles. Meanwhile, the U.S. economy expanded at a 0.7% annualized rate in the first quarter. That was the slowest pace in three years
