Sales of cars, trucks and minivans in the U.S. have bounced back since the devastating effects of the COVID pandemic and supply chain issues. General Motors and Ford Motor Company reported their best yearly new vehicle sales in 2024 since 2019.
A jump in consumer demand for electric vehicles and hybrids led the way. GM reported sales of 2.7 million vehicles, that’s up 4.3% from 2023 and very close to the pre-pandemic level of 2.9 million in 2019.
Ford reported sales of 2.08 million vehicles, up from 2 million the years before, but below the 2019 figure of 2.42 million.
Stephanie Brinley, an associate director at S&P Global Mobility, told CNBC that given the inflationary pressures, it was a good year for the industry, and things are moving in the right direction.
As for other big names, Honda reported an 8.8% increase in 2024 with 1.4 million vehicles sold in America. Toyota saw a 3.7% rise. It sold at least 2.3 million vehicles. Hyundai was up by 4%, reaching a record level of more than 836,000 vehicles sold in the U.S. Kia also reported record U.S. sales in 2024 of almost 800,000.
The biggest drop belonged to Chrysler’s parent company, Stellantis. Sales fell by 15% in the U.S. as demand for Dodge and Jeep products decreased.