As July moves into August, the Wall Street Journal has published its latest installment in monthly car market reports that shows where sales are going for various domestic and foreign auto makers. As of August 2, readers can view graphs and tables that reveal market share and sales for big manufacturers like General Motors, Ford, Chrysler, Toyota and Honda. These big five automakers get the lion’s share of print in these reports, with details on how these five are competing for the greater part of the North American car market.
News from July reveals that General Motors is maintaining its significant advantage over its four major competitors, a position the company has enjoyed the whole way through the past year. While the WSJ ten year chart has General Motors trending down steadily in terms of market share, a twelve month chart shows GM remaining level from June to July at around 20% of total market share, while its nearest competitor, Ford, goes slightly down toward 16%. Among foreign manufacturers, the report shows Toyota trending up from June to July, increasing a lead over competitor Honda and the U.S. auto maker Chrysler.
Other details for the Wall Street Journal report reveal more about sales for each of these makers. A year-to-date sales graph shows year-to-date sales down for Toyota and Honda, but up for most other automakers. This is most likely related to the supply crisis experienced in Japan after natural disasters earlier this year; reports from Japan show supplies and operations stabilizing through the end of this year.
Reports like this one from the Wall Street Journal can be pretty useful to new or used car buyers. When you know where vehicle sales are, and how various auto makers are being affected, you can make a more informed choice about which vehicles are likely to be available at better prices from local dealerships. Using comprehensive auto sales information from national and local markets, as well as good information on your credit and available financing, you can pick up your next car with less debt that gets chalked up against your monthly budget. Know your credit score and what various companies are offering in terms of financing, as well as rebates and incentives. Tracking market events is one way to stay up on how to get a deal in today’s auto market.
