ARLINGTON, Va.—Total vehicle sales made a strong recovery in May, climbing from April's rate of 8.7 million annualized units to 12.2 million annualized units during the month.
However, monthly sales levels were down 29.8% versus May 2019.
“Vehicle sales made a solid comeback in May, rising 40% compared to last month’s slump,” said NAFCU Chief Economist and Vice President of Research Curt Long. “While the May results are encouraging, it is still a long road back to pre-crisis sales levels of 17 million annualized units. Additionally, it is unknown how much of last month’s spike was due to temporary factors like pent-up demand and dealer incentives."
Sales of cars and light trucks both made a strong recovery during the month, rising to 2.7 million annualized units and 9.6 million annualized units, respectively. When compared to May 2019 sales, light trucks were down 24%. However, car sales fared worse and were down 44.9% from a year prior.
“NAFCU predicts a slow recovery as out-of-work Americans struggle to get back into the job market and begin making large durable good purchases again,” Long concluded.
Brian Turner, president and chief economist with Meridian Economics, also reported the road ahead for car sales is improving.