Since gas topped $4 a gallon earlier this year, new car sales have been on a constant decline. Sales hit record lows in October, which many analysts thought was rock bottom – until November’s results came out. The same pattern will likely emerge this month as December sales figures are expected to make November’s results look like a walk in the park.
According to an Edmunds report, new car sales will hit their lowest annual sales rate of 2008 during the month of December. Per Edmunds’ prediction, December’s annual sales rate will total just 9.8 million units – 500,000 units short of November’s final tally and the lowest seen since August 1982, according to Automotive News.
And things won’t be getting any easier in 2009. A looser credit market should financing available to more buyers, but a rocky economy will likely keep shoppers out of new car showrooms. “We thought the bottom was October. Then we thought it was November. It seemed like maybe it’s December, but we’re not so sure anymore,” Jesse Toprak, Edmunds’ executive director of industry analysis told Automotive News.
Edmunds’ report finds that Chrysler will see the biggest drop off in sales for December, down 45.6 percent, followed by Nissan with a 42.1 percent declines and General Motors with a 39.3 percent slip. Toyota , Honda and Ford will round out the top six biggest losers, with declines of 38.8 percent, 37.7 percent and 33.8 percent, respectively.
Automakers are expected to post official results on January 5th.
