New car sales ‘undeniably weak’

Sales of new vehicles continue to tank, but not every carmaker is feeling the pinch.

September 2020 was actually a high-water mark for vehicle sales but the same pattern couldn’t hold true in 2021, according to DesRosiers Automotive Consultants.

Last month’s sales of an estimated 136,584 units were down almost 20% compared to the year before. That brings the seasonally adjusted annual rate to an “undeniably weak” number of 1.55 million units.

However, the Richmond Hill, Ontario-based consultancy noted a “dramatic divergence” when it came to company performance relating to the semiconductor shortage.

“Certain manufacturers have been hit hard by the semiconductor issue, whilst others have escaped (so far) relatively unscathed,” Andrew King, managing partner at DesRosiers, said in an announcement.

For example, Ford and Fiat Chrysler have seen their sales fall even further with a loss of 2.1 and 2.3 points of market share, respectively. Meanwhile, Toyota, Kia and Volkswagen have seen sales increases compared to 2020, up 1.6, 0.4, and 0.3 points, respectively.

“With the semiconductor issue clouded in uncertainty, and with widely ranging speculation as to its future depth and duration, we expect the market to remain unpredictable and volatile in the months ahead,” DesRosiers’ analysis said.