Chrysler 2012 US sales rose 21 per cent; best since 2007
by The Canadian Press
Car and truck buyers paid an average of $31,228 per vehicle last month, up 1.8 per cent from December 2011
DETROIT—Chrysler’s U.S. sales jumped 21 per cent last year, the carmaker’s strongest performance since 2007.
The increase outpaced the U.S. auto industry, which is expected to post a 13 per cent gain for 2012. Chrysler’s sales were a strong sign that Americans felt more confident about the economy as they replaced aging cars and trucks last year.
For December, Chrysler’s sales rose 10 per cent to 152,367 cars and trucks, led by the Jeep Grand Cherokee SUV, Ram pickup and Chrysler 300 luxury car. Chrysler, the first automaker to report sales, said industry sales jumped to an annual rate of 15.8 million in December, making it the strongest month of the year.
The robust sales came even with uncertainty about the so-called fiscal cliff—the automatic tax hikes and spending cuts that would have slowed the U.S. economy.
Sales of new cars and trucks for the year should total around 14.5 million. That is almost 40 per cent higher than 2009, when the economy tanked and sales hit their lowest level in nearly three decades.
Last year U.S. unemployment eased, the housing industry started to recover and people felt a bit more confident in the economy. Interest rates stayed low and banks made loans available to more customers, even those with lousy credit. People began to replace the aging cars and trucks they had owned since before the recession. The average age of a vehicle in the U.S. grew to a record 11.2 years.
In 2012, sales of Japanese brand cars rebounded in the U.S. Customers could choose from more Honda and Toyota models because the companies recovered from a 2011 earthquake and had enough vehicles stocked at dealerships for nearly the whole year.
Honda was expected to lead all manufacturers in December with a 32 per cent rise in sales from a year earlier. Volkswagen also was expected to post big numbers, up 29 per cent, according to the TrueCar.com auto pricing website. General Motors’ sales were forecast to rise just 1 per cent, lagging industry growth as they have for most of the year.
December featured year-end deals on big pickup trucks; GM offered discounts of up to $9,000 to help clear growing inventory.
Overall, though, analysts said the industry eased up on promotions such as rebates and low-interest financing. Car and truck buyers paid an average of $31,228 per vehicle last month, up 1.8 per cent from December 2011.
