by Calculated Risk on 10/03/2016 05:46:00 PM

Based on a preliminary estimate from WardsAuto, light vehicle sales were at a 17.65 million SAAR in September.

That is down about 2% from September 2015, and up 4.3% from the 16.92 million annual sales rate last month.


Click on graph for larger image.

This graph shows the historical light vehicle sales from the BEA (blue) and an estimate for September (red, light vehicle sales of 17.65 million SAAR from WardsAuto).

This was above the consensus forecast of 17.4 million SAAR (seasonally adjusted annual rate).

The second graph shows light vehicle sales since the BEA started keeping data in 1967.

Note: dashed line is current estimated sales rate.

Sales for 2016 - through the first nine months - are up slightly from the comparable period last year.

After increasing significantly for several years following the financial crisis, auto sales are now moving mostly sideways ...