Automakers can thank pickup trucks for a booming US auto market - Business Insider
Another month of US auto sales, another chance to revisit the dominant theme in the market: pickup trucks and SUVs are driving the business to levels not seen since before the financial crisis. Analysts who follow the industry were predicting a 2015 sales pace of 17. 3 million new vehicles at the upper end, but July's data indicates a pace of 17. 6 million. Once again, if you're selling pickup trucks and SUVs in the USA, you're raking in sales and profits (automakers generate substantially higher margins on these vehicles). Ford saw sales of its F-150 pickup, long American's bestselling vehicle, increase by 13%, the biggest hike since 2006. Dodge/Ram and Chrysler — all part of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles — rounded out the Big Three's performance, with Ram pickups... Taken as a whole, July sales represent a stunning comeback for the US auto industry and for the US car market. Cheaper gas and low interest rates, along with an improved economy, are convincing buyers to take the plunge on new vehicles, and especially big trucks (compact SUVs have also been strong, which has brought Honda, Toyota, and Nissan along for the... it's a hangover from the Great Recession, when the US market fell below a 10-million annual pace and credit locked up, curtailing new car sales and nearly driving. Source: www.businessinsider.com
