Ford Motor Co.'s sales in the United States were flat to start 2022, with the Dearborn automaker selling just 143,531 new vehicles in January. That sales output is about the same as Ford's numbers during the same period last year, with the carmaker selling 143,578 units in January 2021.
Ford's truck sales contributed to the flat numbers as they were off by 4.3 percent, with just 71,734 units sold last month. Ford's SUV sales fared much better, with 66,122 vehicles sold for an 8.5 percent increase year-over-year. Ford reported sales of 13,169 units for electrified vehicles, marking a 167.2 percent increase from 2021 and outpacing the overall electrified segment.
The entire U.S. auto industry had a sluggish start to the year, with LMC Automotive reporting on Wednesday, February 2, that sales of light vehicles in the country experienced a huge drop last month. Roughly 1 million light vehicles were sold in the United States last month, the fewest in January since 2014. Those figures are 9 percent fewer than light vehicle sales in the U.S. in January 2020.
Much of the auto industry in the U.S. reports sales on a quarterly basis, but among the car brands that still report their sales monthly, many were down in the first month of the year. For example, Honda's sales in America were down by 20 percent, while Toyota Motor North America's sales were down around 5 percent. Hyundai Motor America managed to buck the trend, recording its highest-ever January sales total, posting a 10 percent increase compared to the same period last year.
It was not all doom and gloom, as January 2022 saw the highest seasonally adjusted annual rate since June 2021 with 15.2 million units per year. Analysts remain optimistic that the car industry will rebound later this year, as long as inventory levels of car brands continue to improve throughout 2022. According to the forecasting firm, they expect total sales in the U.S. to hit 15.9 million units this year, a 7 percent increase compared to the final 2021 numbers.
2021 was a rough year for automakers across the globe as car production was severely affected worldwide by supply chain issues and a massive computer chip shortage. That depleted inventory levels globally, sending prices of vehicles soaring.
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Those problems remain for carmakers in 2022, according to LMC's president of Americas operations and global vehicle forecasts, Jeff Schuster. He said that the auto industry and economy continue to face a wide array of risks this year, including continuing manufacturing stress from labor shortages and supply chain disruptions.
Schuster added that outside variables like inflation concerns, COVID-19 variants and restrictions, and even a geopolitical shock could negatively impact the natural balance of supply and demand in the auto industry for the third consecutive year. He is optimistic, though, that the auto industry will rise to the challenges in 2022 through innovation and by adapting to the dynamic environment.
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