Automakers are reporting falling sales as a shrinking car segment combats the growth in the crossover and SUV segments.
Ford, Nissan, General Motors and Toyota all reported U. S. sales declines in April, strong signs that demand for cars, trucks and SUVs is starting to slow after seven straight years of growth.
Ford’s sales fell 7.2 percent, dragged down by car sales that tumbled over 21 percent. At Nissan, sales dropped 1.5 percent as SUV demand couldn’t overcome slowing car sales. Sales of the Rogue small SUV were up almost 40 percent, but car sales fell nearly 14 percent. It was about the same story at General Motors, where sales were down 5.8 percent as strong performances from some SUVs and the Cruze compact car couldn’t offset falling pickup truck demand.
Toyota reported a 2 percent sales decline for the month as healthy sales of the RAV4 small SUV were overcome by falling demand for cars such as the Camry and Corolla.
Industry analysts expect April sales to be down anywhere from 2 percent to 4 percent, but still run at a healthy annual rate of around 17.1 million vehicles. Most major automakers report sales figures on Tuesday.
Kelley Blue Book says it looks like 2017 U. S. sales will fall short of last year’s record 17.5 million for the first annual sales drop since 2009.
While sales still are healthy, automakers are offering deals to compete for a piece of the shrinking pie.
