| Actual | Previous | Revised | |
| Total Vehicle Sales - Annual Rate | 14.9M | 16.0M | |
| North American-Made Sales - Annual Rate | 11.4M | 12.7M | 12.5M |
Highlights
Sales of new motor vehicles start slower in 2026, although some of that may be due to the extreme cold weather, ice, and snow that affected large parts of the US later in the month. There may be some need to replace storm damaged vehicles in February as well as capturing some pent-up demand. If so, February normally a weak month for motor vehicle sales may get a boost.
Sales of new motor vehicles are at a 14.9 million unit seasonally adjusted annual pace in January after 16.0 million units in December, and are below the 15.5 million unit pace in January 2025.
Sales of passenger cars dipped to 2.604 million units in January from 2.673 million in December and are fewer than 2.813 million units in January 2025. Sales of light trucks which include SUVs, crossovers, and minivans are slower at a 12.333 million unit pace compared to 13.329 million units in December and 12.663 million units a year ago. Sales of light trucks maintain their dominance with an 83 percent share of units sold, but there is a hint here that consumers are considering sticker prices and insurance costs more carefully at a time of economic uncertainty.
Sales of heavy trucks which are mainly a business investment are up to 459,000 units in January after 392,000 in December and 474,000 in January 2025. Many heavy truck purchases were front-loaded in early 2025 to avoid possible higher prices related to tariffs. Some demand is returning this January when businesses make decisions about their needs for the coming year and when the cost of higher tariffs can't be avoided.
Definition
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.
Description
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.