Source: Finance Association
① New car sales in the US increased by nearly 5% year-on-year in the first quarter, with total sales of nearly 3.8 million units; ② However, sales of electric vehicles slowed during the same period. Sales of electric vehicles in the US only increased by 2.7%, far lower than the 47% increase last year; ③ Some analysts suggest that more mainstream buyers are skeptical about charging infrastructure, battery life, and insurance costs.
On Tuesday (4/2), most car manufacturers released sales data in the US. According to statistics, sales of new cars in the US increased by nearly 5% year-on-year in the first quarter, with total sales of nearly 3.8 million units.
Notably, sales growth of electric vehicles slowed sharply in the first three months of this year, as mainstream buyers began to worry about shortcomings such as limited range and insufficient charging stations.
This slowdown in electric vehicles confirms the concerns of car manufacturers — they seem to be moving too fast to meet the needs of electric car buyers.
Electric vehicle growth is weak
According to data, in the first quarter of this year, sales of electric vehicles in the US increased by only 2.7%, slightly higher than 268,000 units, far lower than the 47% increase last year; the share of electric vehicles in total sales in the US fell to 7.1% from 7.6% last year.
Ivan Drury, research director at the automotive information website Edmunds, explained that almost all early experimenters and environmentalists have already bought electric cars, and the problems faced by electric car companies now stem from the skepticism of mainstream buyers.
Drury pointed out that concerns about charging infrastructure, battery life, and insurance costs are a major source of trouble for the electric vehicle industry.
It is worth mentioning here that global sales of electric vehicle giant Tesla fell 8.5% in the first quarter, recording the first year-on-year decline since the second quarter of 2020. According to market research firm MotorIntelligence.com, Tesla's sales volume in the US fell by more than 13% in the first quarter.
Although Tesla blamed the decline in sales on incidents such as factory changes to produce the upgraded Model 3, delivery delays in the Red Sea, and arson damage at the German factory, the slowdown in consumer demand has long been the company's biggest concern.
Meanwhile, Jonathan Smoke, chief economist at Cox Automotive, the largest auto trading platform in the US, warned that the auto industry seems to have hit a peak in spring sales because the current high interest rates keep potential car buyers on the sidelines, consumers have no sense of urgency to buy, and the market expects the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates later this year.
Switch to more affordable cars
Today, there is another sign in the car market that more cost-effective cars are selling better.
Drury of the car information website Edmunds said that more affordable cars sell faster than more expensive cars. Sales of many large and expensive SUVs declined during the quarter as buyers began focusing more on frugality.
For example, GM's Chevrolet brand sold 37,588 Trax compact SUVs this quarter, an increase of more than five times over the same period last year. The Trax starts at around $21,500, and its sales volume even exceeds the total sales volume of Cadillac, which is also owned by GM.
From January to March, GM, the best-selling car manufacturer in the US, reported a 1.5% drop in sales in the first quarter; Stellantis sales fell nearly 10%; and Kia's sales fell 2.5%. All three companies had strong sales for the same period last year.
In comparison, Japanese car companies performed quite well. Toyota announced a sharp increase of 20% in sales in the US during the quarter, and said that its total sales volume of hybrid cars and electric vehicles increased by 36%; Honda said that its sales increased 17%; Nissan and Subaru sales both increased 7%; while South Korea's Hyundai increased by only 0.2%.
editor/tolk