A recently released National Association of Federally-Insured Credit Unions (NAFCU) report maintains July vehicle sales dipped because of a lack of supply.
The NAFCU’s Macro Data Flash report showed total vehicle sales decreased from 15.4 million annualized units to 14.8 million annualized units during July.
“Vehicle sales continued their slide in July, driven primarily by lack of supply,” NAFCU Chief Economist and Vice President of Research Curt Long said. “With an economy in recovery, the macroeconomic factors exist for very strong sales, but unfortunately supply is not cooperating.”
Per the analysis, July car sales fell from 3.6 million annualized units to 3.5 million annualized units, and light truck sales dipped to 11.3 million annualized units.
“Dealers are being stingier with incentives and manufacturers are using their limited semiconductor supply on the most profitable vehicles,” Long said. “The shortage is so acute that U.S. auto production fell to its lowest level in 30 years.”
The report also indicated vehicle sales have declined 4.1 percent from July 2019 and are presently at their lowest rate since August 2012.
“Unmet demand in the new vehicle market has propelled used car prices upward at a rapid pace in 2021, but the latest data suggests some modest softening over the past two months,” Long said. “Experts anticipate the production snags will persist into early 2022, which will continue to weigh on sales.”