Black Friday Powers Sales of New Cars
IRVINE, Calif. – Sales of new vehicle in November tend to be heavily skewed toward the end of the month because of Black Friday, according to Kelley Blue Book. General Motors Co. is expected to receive a strong push this month, thanks to high demand for a host of redesigned models across its product portfolio.
Fears of a vehicle sales hangover following the government shutdown in October turned out to be overblown as consumers showed no hesitation heading out to dealerships this month, says Kelley Blue Book.
"Although sales are only expected to rise approximately 3.6% from last year, it should be noted that sales were especially strong in November 2012 as consumers on the East Coast returned to the dealership to replace a vehicle or make a purchase that was delayed due to Superstorm Sandy," said Alec Gutierrez, senior analyst for Kelley Blue Book. "Sales in November tend to be heavily skewed toward the end of the month because of Black Friday sales events, such as General Motors' current supplier pricing promotion and deals on Ford models. So sales could surpass current expectations if the available deals are especially enticing."
Highlights for projected sales this November:
- New light-vehicle sales, including fleets, are expected to hit 1.185 million units, up 3.6% from November 2012 but down 1.7 % from October 2013.
- The seasonally adjusted annual rate for November is projected to be 15.6 million, up from 15.3 million in November 2012 and up from 15.2 million in October 2013.
- Retail sales are expected to account for 83% of volume.
General Motors is expected to receive a strong push in November, thanks to high demand for a host of redesigned models across its product portfolio. "The Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra should have solid growth as demand for pickups continues with the strength in the real estate market," Gutierrez noted. "Solid gains also are expected for Cadillac and Buick as consumers continue to look to the new Cadillac ATS, XTS and Buick Encore as legitimate competitors to traditional luxury players, such as BMW and Mercedes-Benz."
Further boosting the manufacturer's performance will be Black Friday deals that will allow consumers to receive employee pricing for a variety of General Motors' vehicles, he added.
Continuing the trend through the remainder of 2013, crossover and full-size pickup trucks will be the two top-performing segments in November.
"We expect the small crossover segment to improve by more than 20%, thanks to solid demand for segment mainstays, such as the Ford Escape and Honda CR-V, as well as the Toyota RAV4, which was just recently redesigned," Gutierrez said. "Full-size trucks will improve 8.1%, below the more than 20% growth that was the norm through most of the year. The slowdown in the growth of the truck segment comes as no surprise as we are now at a point where we are comparing to sales in late 2012 when the acceleration in pickup truck sales really began."
Although significant growth is expected in the truck and crossover segments, sales of mid-size and compact cars have slowed. Compact cars have seen relatively steady sales volume lately, likely because of falling fuel prices. This is a segment that mighty be close to equilibrium in terms of market share.
With so many strong performers in segment, such as the redesigned Toyota Corolla, Honda Civic and Ford Focus, consumers will have ample opportunity for a great deal, the report found. Mid-size sedan sales have slowed because of competition with small crossovers. There has been a tremendous amount of cross shopping between these two segments, which has slowed growth in the mid-size segment. This is another segment that presents a tremendous opportunity for many consumers, especially with heated competition of compelling products and pricing wars between the Toyota Camry, Honda Accord and Ford Fusion.
Published by The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.
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