General Motors Co (GM) last year overtook Japanese automaker Toyota Motor Corp in US vehicle sales, company figures showed on Wednesday.
GM reclaimed the top spot on strong demand after earlier supply difficulties.
In 2021, the automakers saw a rankings shift with Toyota jumping ahead for the first time as a semiconductors shortage shook the vehicle industry. Assembly lines took a hit, and the two companies saw steep sales declines.
Photo: REUTERS
GM on Wednesday said its sales in the US last year jumped 3 percent to about 2.3 million units.
That was higher than Toyota’s reported annual figure of 2.1 million vehicles.
Nearly half of GM’s sales last year were of full-size pickup trucks and big sports utility vehicles (SUVs), as the company turned to higher-margin vehicles while supply problems spilled over into last year.
Photo: REUTERS
Its Chevrolet Bolt and Bolt EUV electric vehicles also delivered their “best sales year ever,” GM said, adding that it sees opportunities to grow its electric vehicle market share this year.
Meanwhile, Toyota’s US deliveries dropped 9.6 percent for the whole of last year. Sales of its SUVs, an important segment, dropped 8.6 percent.
However, it touted its electrified vehicle sales, saying these made up nearly one-quarter of total sales volume last year.
Full-year sales for the industry last year are forecast at 13.9 million units, market researchers at Cox Automotive Inc said.
That would be a drop from 2021 and lowest since 2011, when total new vehicle sales were recovering from the Great Recession, Cox researchers said.
Meanwhile, sales of new vehicles in the UK last year sank to their lowest level in three decades, plagued by parts shortages and COVID-19-linked supply chain woes, industry data showed yesterday.
The UK’s mainly foreign-owned automakers sold a combined 1.61 million vehicles — the lowest since 1992, data compiled by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) showed.
That marked a 2 percent decline from 2021, when demand was blighted by a COVID-19 pandemic-induced slump and semiconductor shortages.
Nevertheless, Britain reclaimed its position as Europe’s second-biggest vehicle market behind Germany, after being overtaken by France in the past few years, while the SMMT forecast a 15 percent jump in new vehicle sales for this year.
“The automotive market remains adrift of its pre-pandemic performance, but could well buck wider economic trends by delivering significant growth in 2023,” SMMT chief executive Mike Hawes said.
“Looking ahead, supply chains are beginning to stabilize, and although the shortage of semiconductors is expected to ease, erratic supply will likely impact manufacturing throughout 2023,” he said.
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