US auto sales could be down by as much as 30% year on year in October 2008, according to a top Hyundai Motor executive.
Go deeper with GlobalData
Discover B2B Marketing That Performs
Combine business intelligence and editorial excellence to reach engaged professionals across 36 leading media platforms.
North American sales chief David Zuchowski told Reuters: “I think the primary driver for continued sales deterioration right now is the crisis in consumer confidence. It’s at all time low levels and consumers are simply electing to sit on the sidelines.”
As reported earlier this month, the analyst group Edmunds.com expects US new vehicle sales in October to fall 28.9% year on year to 872,000 units, a 9.4% decrease from September 2008.
October 2008 had 27 selling days, one more than October 2007. When adjusted for this difference, sales will decreased 31.6% from October 2007, Edmunds said.
Adjusted for selling days it sees Chrysler sales off 40.4%, Ford down 37.2% and GM down 42.9%.
Among the import brands, Honda sales are seen down 20.3%, Nissan off 31.9% and Toyota down 18.7%.
“The typical Columbus Day weekend boost was almost imperceptible this year,” said top Edmunds analyst Jesse Toprak.
“Looking ahead, November is traditionally one of the worst sales months of the year, and December is usually one of the best. If the election and other variables don’t have a significant impact on auto sales through December, we are looking at an annual total of about 13.6m units.”
