Prospecting: Key Moves from National Auto Brands This Week.
Toyota Motor’s global production decreased for a 10th straight month in November, the Japanese carmaker said, although its worldwide sales grew for the second consecutive month on solid demand in the U.S. and China. The world’s biggest automaker manufactured 869,230 vehicles globally in November, down 6.2% from the same month last year, a larger fall than October’s 0.8% dip, Reuters reports.
Honda Motor absorbing Nissan Motor could give the two struggling Japanese brands the scale they need to take on China’s BYD, sales figures show. Honda, which has sketched out plans for a deal that amounts to an acquisition of Nissan, sold 3.43 million cars globally in the first 11 months of 2024. Nissan said it sold just over 3 million. China’s biggest automaker BYD sold 3.76 million vehicles over the same period — a clear illustration of how Nissan and Honda are weak alone but, together, might have a fighting chance, Bloomberg says.
New light-vehicle sales in November 2024 beat expectations with a monthly SAAR of 16.5 million units, the highest since May 2021. November’s SAAR also increased 6.7% from November 2023, with its raw volume total of 1.36 million units up 10.1% on a year-over-year basis. According to Wards Intelligence, retail volume represented 1.19 million units of November’s total, an increase of 7.4% based on daily selling rates. Daily selling rate comparisons are helpful here because November 2024 had one more selling weekend than November 2023, which may explain some of the volume growth.
Stellantis has reversed its decision to lay off about 1,100 employees at an Ohio Jeep plant less than three weeks after the abrupt resignation of Chief Executive Carlos Tavares, the Franco-Italian automaker said. The company has decided not to put any employees on indefinite layoff from Jan. 5 due to a previously announced shift reduction and will instead extend a worker adjustment and retraining notification notice, a company spokesperson said in an emailed statement.
There has been an undeniable pause in consumer demand for BEVs, WardsAuto reports. The incoming Trump Administration has vowed to roll back the federal tax credits for electric-vehicle buyers, which will further dampen demand and force automakers to slow down investments in bringing more BEVs to market. For the 2025 model year, a raft of new battery-electric CUVs and SUVs are hitting the market, and these are the most popular categories for consumers overall.
The Wall Street Journal says stubbornly high car prices and elevated interest rates are persuading more Americans that when it comes to their next car purchase, bigger isn’t always better. U.S. car buyers have for years gravitated to larger, roomier vehicles, a shift that had become so pronounced last decade that some automakers killed off their small-car and sedan models because of slumping sales. But with the average monthly payment for a new car soaring to new heights in recent years, some car shoppers are moving back in the other direction.
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