Automakers Ride Trucks and SUVs to Strong July Sales - Fox Business
auto industry raced to a stronger than expected sales month in July, as consumers continued to ride off with new trucks and sport-utility vehicles. Low-interest auto loans, aging vehicles and cheaper gasoline, as well as redesigned pickup trucks and SUVs, have buoyed demand. Research firm Autodata calculated a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 17. 55 million for July, well ahead of Kelley Blue Book’s forecast for 17. 1 million. Industry-wide sales were up 5. 3%. Ford Motor Co. ( ) said it booked the company’s best July sales since 2006. Deliveries were up 4. 9% to 222,731 vehicles amid a positive month for F-Series trucks, which include the revamped 2015 F-150. Ford... F-Series sales grew 4. 8% in July, although they remain down since the start of the year. The Lincoln brand reported 21% sales growth for July. Ford, whose car sales dropped 3. 9%, was not alone in benefitting from America’s appetite for large vehicles. “Almost all of their sales power is coming from SUVs and trucks. Trucks and SUVs also carried General Motors ( ) to a better-than-expected July of 272,512 vehicles delivered. Source: www.foxbusiness.com
