Best U S car sales in 2 years expected
Post on: 2011-11-02 By: admin
Greek referendum talk jolts markets
ComputersElectronics
Oct. 31, 2011, 1:46 p.m. EDT
Best U.S. car sales in 2 years expected
Chrysler seen as October’s top winner; ‘mini-bubble’ cited by analysts
By Shawn Langlois, MarketWatch
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — The car industry, riding higher incentives and signs of a healthier economy, is expected to report its best sales month since the cash-for-clunkers spree more than two years ago.
Edmunds.com forecast a seasonally adjusted annual rate of sales, a closely watched measure referred to as SAAR by industry analysts, of 13.4 million vehicles, up from 12.2 million, a year ago. But the car-buying research website warned of a potential “mini-bubble” for the group.
Japan moves to ease the yen
In a fresh round of foreign-exchange intervention Monday, the Bank of Japan spent an estimated ¥5 trillion to ¥6 trillion ($63 billion to $76 billion) to try to weaken its currency against the dollar.
“October’s sales numbers are certainly a bright spot in a sluggish economy, but it would be a mistake to believe that this momentum is the ‘new normal,’” analyst Jessica Caldwell said. “Unless early holiday incentives inspire droves of buyers in November, we don’t expect the SAAR to remain quite that high next month.”
If the results match expectations for October, it would mark the fifth straight month of year-over-year sales gains, with a 33% jump from Chrysler leading the way, according to TrueCar.com. Reports come out on Tuesday.
/quotes/zigman/202910NSANY
is on track to report the second-best improvement, up almost 19% while General Motors Co.
/quotes/zigman/1466682/quotes/nls/gmGM
/quotes/zigman/264304/quotes/nls/fF
are seen coming in with single-digit gains.
Chrysler Group assembly workers lower the frame onto the chassis for Jeeps, Grand Cherokees and Dodge Durangos.
“Consumers are no longer dragging their feet on new vehicle purchases as they feel the economy is moving in the right direction, ” TrueCar.com analyst Jesse Toprak said.
Sales promotions helped boost the results. The industry average incentive spending is expected to reach $2,669 per vehicle in October 2011, TrueCar.com forecast. That represents a jump of 4.6% from a year ago.
Chrysler spent the most on promotions per vehicle but managed to reduce the amount from a year ago. At the same time, every other car maker, aside from Hyundai, spent more than they did in October 2010.
/quotes/zigman/193599/quotes/nls/hmcHMC
and Toyota Motor Corp.
/quotes/zigman/199376/quotes/nls/tmTM
seem to have mostly gotten a handle on their inventory woes, but October sales are still expected to have fallen 3% and 7%, respectively.
Both, however, are seen taking back market share from last month.
/quotes/zigman/202910
Nissan Motor Co. Ltd. ADS
/quotes/zigman/1466682/quotes/nls/gm
/quotes/zigman/264304/quotes/nls/f
/quotes/zigman/193599/quotes/nls/hmc
Honda Motor Co. Ltd. ADS
/quotes/zigman/199376/quotes/nls/tm
Shawn Langlois is a reporter for MarketWatch in San Francisco.
U.S. stock futures drop on Greek referendum
U.S. stocks rattled by Greek bailout move
Portfolio Insights by Brett Arends
6 things no one will tell you about MF Global
Google TV reboots, but is anyone watching?
Europe stocks sink on Greece referendum fears
10 bits of advice for Mario Draghi
The Technical Indicator
U.S. markets plunge to major support
MarketWatch First Take
3 big questions for MF Global fiasco
Rich Class fighting 99%, winning big-time
Netflix Shares Fall 26% as Subscribers Bail
Apple's Unique Problem: High Profits Disappoint
What Would Occupy Boston Ask Bernanke
Libyan oil to calm world energy market
U.S. stocks rattled by Greek bailout move
Greek referendum provokes fresh turmoil
3 big questions for MF Global fiasco
Where’s the money, where were the regulators and why did CEO Jon Corzine say risk was down a few days...
Demographics and the stock market
How much should investors worry that the Baby Boomers’ retirement will lead to an abnormal amount of...
U.S. markets plunge to major support
U.S. stocks are on the defensive to start November following their best October performance in 37 years.
Updated Privacy Policy
Virtual Stock Exchange
/marketstate/country/us
/marketstate/country/uk
/marketstate/country/jp
/marketstate/country/us
/marketstate/country/uk
/marketstate/country/jp
2:02pHigh-yield corporate bond index rises 5.99% in Oct
1:59pOil declines nearly 3% on Europe jitters
1:57pLeap, MetroPCS on opposite paths after earnings
1:54pGold extends losing streak to a third session
1:52pAirline stocks have rough start to November
1:51pGold futures end lower for third-straight session
1:51pDec. gold settles at $1,711.80/oz, down $13.40
1:46pBREAKINGKia USA October sales rise 21%
1:39pBrazil, Mexico stocks fall as EU debt plan worries
1:39pHyundai sets yearly sales record
1:36pGold cuts losses ahead of NY settlement, down 0.5%
1:33pCORRECTEDTreasury yields fall under 2% on Greece
1:26pHow to trade the new Greek crisis
1:18pBritish stocks slump, led by Barclays, Man Group
1:18pBREAKINGMercedes October sales rise 28.2%
1:14pMorgan Stanley stock swoons as financials hit
1:08pEurope stocks sink on Greece referendum fears
1:06pEurope must implement deal rapidly: White House
1:00pBREAKINGNissan Oct. U.S. sales jump 18%
12:57pU.S. stocks rattled by Greek bailout move
Loading more headlines...
/quotes/zigman/627449/delayed
/quotes/zigman/123127
/quotes/zigman/3870025
/conga/kiosk/currency.html
/conga/kiosk/community.html
Platinum better than gold
Gold's reputation as a safe haven may be tarnished and platinum
is looking to be a better investment than the yellow metal.
/conga/kiosk/trading-deck-1.html
The easy money has been made
The best way to profit in this market is to keep it simple:
don't trade individual stocks and focus solely on the stock
/conga/kiosk/trading-deck-2.html
Conviction and EU worries return
Amid bleak reminders of Europe's baggage, the institutional
investor has returned to the market.
/conga/kiosk/trading-deck-3.html
MarketWatch on Facebook
MarketWatch on Twitter
Virtual Stock Exchange
MarketWatch Community
Financial News Online
WSJ.com Small Business
Copyright © 2011 MarketWatch, Inc.All rights reserved.
By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Service
and Privacy Policy - UPDATED 10/18/2011.
Intraday Data provided by SIX Telekurs and subject to terms of use. Historical and current end-of-day data provided by SIX Telekurs. Intraday data delayed per exchange requirements. Dow Jones Indexes (SM) from Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All quotes are in local exchange time. Real time last sale data provided by NASDAQ. More information on NASDAQ traded symbols and their current financial status. Intraday data delayed 15 minutes for Nasdaq, and 20 minutes for other exchanges. Dow Jones IndexesSM from Dow Jones & Company, Inc. SEHK intraday data is provided by SIX Telekurs and is at least 60-minutes delayed. All quotes are in local exchange time.
MarketWatch Top Stories
Link to MarketWatch's Slice.
Email address or display name
The action you requested requires a MarketWatch Community display name.
Email address or display name
Get your FREE membership now »
MarketWatch Community is a free service that lets you discover, organize and share MarketWatch stories with other readers.
The action you requested is only available to MarketWatch members.Please sign in or register.
Email address or display name
Don't have a MarketWatch account?
Get your FREE membership now »
By registering, you are agreeing to MarketWatch's Terms of Service and to receiving periodic news and special offers via email about MarketWatch enhancements, products and services.
Article original from: http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story.asp?guid=%7B690518E4-03D1-11E1-B7EF-002128040CF6%7D&siteid=rss&rss=1
