Auto Sales Plummet Again
By Barry Ritholtz - December 2nd, 2008, 1:00PM
U.S. auto sales plunged 37 percent in November to the lowest annual rate in 26 years as the recession and Detroit automakers’ aid pleas kept buyers away from showrooms.
Ford’s November sales down 30.6%;
Toyota sales down 33.9%.
Honda sales down 31.6%
Volvo sales tumbled 46.5%
Chrysler U.S. sales fell 47%
GM falls 41%
The auto slump has gone global: Indian auto maker Tata Motors posted a 30% sales decline (its 2nd consecutive month of big sales drop)
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More data coming soon
December 2nd, 2008 at 1:35 pm
Honda sales down 31.6%
December 2nd, 2008 at 1:37 pm
Auto sales are down???
What’s next, they’ll tell us we are in a recession?
December 2nd, 2008 at 2:05 pm
“Boats!!!! Boats, you idiots!!!!!! A rising tide raises all B-O-A-T-S!!!!” – unnamed Reaganomics idealogue.
December 2nd, 2008 at 2:06 pm
@Winston Munn: The average person can’t afford those either.
December 2nd, 2008 at 2:09 pm
@Mannwich,
Nobody here named Average – we are all Exceptionals, haven’t you heard?
December 2nd, 2008 at 2:17 pm
Looks like the automakers real problem is how to operate a system built for 16 million car sales in a 10 million annualized sales volume world. This would be extremely difficult if they were in strong financial shape to begin with and indicates that parts suppliers must be close to death as well. There has to be light at the end of the tunnel in order to commit to a solution and I cedrtainly do not see when sales will begin to inch up again. You do not begin to solve a problem this severe via congressionhal testimony.
December 2nd, 2008 at 2:17 pm
Or as they say here in Garrison Keillor-Land, “Above Average”.
December 2nd, 2008 at 3:17 pm
Guess the news seals the auto bailout and rightfully so. Although most of us here don’t like bailouts. “Air” Francis asked her guest panel today, “why do the Big 3 deserve a bailout?” No one offered because they are the backbone of what’s left of our manufacturing base in this country. Pitiful as that may be.
December 2nd, 2008 at 3:22 pm
If Congress votes for a bailout, doesn’t Bush veto it…?
(If so, short sellers will make some green).
December 2nd, 2008 at 3:24 pm
I bought some TM today.
December 2nd, 2008 at 3:27 pm
rookie question/statement: I assume this is Year-over-Year…
December 2nd, 2008 at 3:40 pm
Vermont Trader @ 3:24
You’re trading against Jeff Macke.
(And that chart of TM doesn’t look all that healthy to me).
December 2nd, 2008 at 3:44 pm
Macke covered..
December 2nd, 2008 at 3:45 pm
almost every chart looks like sh*t
December 2nd, 2008 at 3:51 pm
Who make the best bikes ?
December 2nd, 2008 at 3:55 pm
Simon @ 3:51
Despite what Lance Armstrong may tell you, not Trek. Cervelo, if you can afford one. The R3 is a thing of engineering and aesthetic beauty.
December 2nd, 2008 at 4:02 pm
i am planning to get a soloist carbon, as soon as i recover my losses
December 2nd, 2008 at 4:05 pm
Exiting day! For the dow to recapture and surpass 8350 in the last 30 minutes was not only steller, it was a coup! Tomorrow, maybe, we complete the reverse H&S in all three indices… putting the dow back to last friday’s level…
December 2nd, 2008 at 4:06 pm
“We cannot let the American People know that we are in a recession! What to do? What to do?”
“Wait! I know: Deny Deny Deny.
“Then after the denials are exhausted, tell them that actually we’ve been in a Recession for over a year. Then, we’ll start passing around a neat little factoid that the Recession That Wasn’t is actually the 4th longest since the Great Depression.
“Once this is done, we can just sit back and watch them draw the nice, neat conclusion that …’This recession’s been going on an awfully long time. ‘ Then, they’ll think to themselves (with CNBC graciously providing the soundtrack to this inner monologue) ‘You know stocks typically start going up about 3-4 months prior to the end of a recession…and since this one’s been going on for so long now, it is obviously the time to start buying stocks. You know, now that I think about it—-this is a great buying opportunity. I’m buying stock at the bottom of the next great bull market. Wooo! Hoooo!!!’”
December 2nd, 2008 at 4:20 pm
@karen: i like that story, but in case it turns Grimm, i sold the uyg for 12.9%…..funny thing is, i used to be a buy and hold guy, maybe 2-3 trades a year….i think the volatility is growing on me :/
December 2nd, 2008 at 4:33 pm
I would be careful about jumping aboard the “all clear” train just yet. Wealth destruction of this magnitude cannot be so easily overcome.
During the 1990s, this study: Disentangling the Wealth Effect: a Cohort Analysis of Household Savings in the 1990s showed that the savings rate plummeted among those who realized the wealth effect of equities’ gains – the upper incomes. The housing “wealth effect” is much more serious as it ecompassed a broader area of incomes and affected more households.
Having depleted savings and with no wage increases and no equity in our assets, how can there possibly be growth?
Sounds more and more Japan-like to me, now that we have a NINJA economy.
December 2nd, 2008 at 4:40 pm
@karen: Economic reports on jobs and unemployment due out Thursday & Friday (and I think Nov retail sales on Thursday too). Unless something that is a major positive hits, I expect a drop at the end of the week.
December 2nd, 2008 at 4:53 pm
agree that 2009 will be a very difficult year; and i’m certainly not suggesting dow 14000. i do feel that between hedge fund redemptions, forced liquidations, deleveraging, margin calls and panic, there are FINALLY some stocks worthy of investment; and with half the competition wiped out or bankrupt, earnings may still exist for these companies.
December 2nd, 2008 at 5:54 pm
Tomorrow gotta sell that last bit of SPY and ORCL….
December 2nd, 2008 at 5:58 pm
Inre job reports on Thurs., Friday. That goof Jim Paulsen was on CNBC this morning to tell everyone that down -250,000 on jobs would actually be good news because, well, it could be a lot worse. IOW, it’s not a depression (yet), it’s only a recession. Time to load up on stocks!
December 2nd, 2008 at 6:50 pm
How is it that GM, a company that will be out of cash by the end of December and will not make it well into 1Q 2009, had people buying their stock today? Sure, Uncle Sugar will dole out cheap funds – it’s a given – but anyone who thinks that $16b is all it will take to right this ship of despair has got to be high on something.
December 2nd, 2008 at 7:04 pm
Thought it was interesting that the stock market shrugged it off.
I don’t know if anyone noted it, but volume on the big down day Monday was only a little bigger than Friday’s half day. Not tremendous selling, but not a lot of buyers. Today’s volume was a little bigger. Maybe it means something.
December 2nd, 2008 at 11:06 pm
as addendum:
Is there any precedent for this in recent decades?
Via: Reuters:
* Porsche schedules 8 days of production stops at main plant
* Volkswagen may stop production in Wolfsburg for 3 weeks
* Audi says production halts are a precaution
* BMW says will cut further 400 temporary jobs in Leipzig
* Porsche shares down 8.8 pct, VW down 17.7 pct
(Adds Audi production stops, BMW temporary job cuts)
FRANKFURT, Nov 25 (Reuters) – German carmakers made another move to cut output levels towards the end of the year to offset slumping demand as the global economic crisis prompts consumers and companies to closely monitor their finances.
Sports car maker Porsche halted production at its headquarters in the southern German town of Zuffenhausen, for one day on Nov. 21, and planned to stop assembly for another seven days until end-January….
http://cryptogon.com/?p=5391