November Domestic Auto Sales Hit New Heights: Consumer Business Wrap

The month of November saw auto sales in the United States soar to a five-year high, on a rebound from hurricane-ravaged October, along with the need to replace aging vehicles; industry executives are now optimistic about next year. November sales jumped by 15 percent to 1.14 million vehicles, marking the highest level for that month since back in 2007, before the financial crisis that caused a catastrophic decline in demand, leading to the bankruptcy filings of General Motors Company (NYSE:GM) and Chrysler. Gary Bradshaw, portfolio manager with Hodges Capital Management in Dallas, opined that “Vehicle sales are one of the encouraging spots of our economy.” Better-than-anticipated November sales were seen by Ford Motor Company (NYSE:F), Honda Motor Co., (NYSE:HMC) and Nissan Motor Co. (NSANY.OB), while Toyota Motor Corporation (NYSE:TM), Chrysler Group, and Hyundai Motor Co. also posted strong increases. GM saw its sales a bit short, and said that since a smaller share of its sales are from the region hit by Sandy, it benefited less than its rivals from the November recovery.

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