Sales of motor vehicles are up to 15.7 million units at a seasonally adjusted annual rate in January after 13.4 million units in December and above the 15.1 million units solid in January 2022. Sales of domestically-produced motor vehicles are at 12.4 million units in January after 10.5 million units in December, and above 11.8 million units in January 2022. Sales of domestically produced vehicles accounted for 79 percent of all sales.

Total sales of passenger cars rise to 3.116 million units in January, up from 2.812 million in December, and above the 3.039 million units in January 2022. Light truck sales which include minivans, SUVs, and crossovers see sales at 12.622 million units in January after 10.563 million units in December, and was above the 12.072 million units in January 2022. Sales of light trucks accounted for 80 percent of all sales and remain the preference of purchasers despite higher fuel costs.

Sales of heavy trucks which reflect business investment in equipment decline to 466,000 units in January from 501,000 in December, although they are above the 438,000 in January 2022. There was an uptick in purchases of heavy trucks in the second half of 2022 when it became clear that financing costs were going higher. The decrease in January is probably due to exhausted demand. It also suggests weakness in business investment for GDP in the first quarter 2023.

Unit vehicle sales in January are expected to rebound sharply to a 14.3 million rate versus 13.3 million in December.

Unit sales of motor vehicles, published by the Bureau of Economic Analysis at the beginning of each month, include domestic sales and imports. Domestics are sales of autos produced in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico. Imports are U.S. sales of vehicles produced elsewhere. The data track all passenger cars and light trucks up to 14,000 pounds gross weight (including minivans and sport utility vehicles). Though totals include a relatively small portion sold to businesses, motor vehicle sales are good indicators of trends in consumer spending and often are considered a leading indicator at business cycle turning points.

Since motor vehicle sales are an important element of consumer spending, market players watch this closely to get a handle on the direction of the economy. The pattern of consumption spending is one of the foremost influences on stock and bond markets. Strong economic growth translates to healthy corporate profits and higher stock prices. The bond market focus is on whether economic growth goes overboard and leads to inflation. Ideally, the economy walks that fine line between strong growth and excessive (inflationary) growth. This balance was achieved through much of the nineties. For this reason alone, investors in the stock and bond markets enjoyed huge gains during the bull market of the 1990s.

Retail sales growth did slow down in tandem with the equity market during the 2001 recession but then, boosted by a low interest rate environment, rose sharply through 2007 before falling sharply during the Great Recession. Sales then recovered and, once again boosted by low rates, began a long period of steady and favorable growth.

In a more specific sense, auto and truck sales show market conditions for auto makers and the slew of auto-related companies. These figures can influence particular stock prices and provide insight to investment opportunities in this industry. Given that most consumers borrow money to buy cars or trucks, sales also reflect confidence in current and future economic conditions.