Despite what normally would be a bleak backdrop for the car business, US vehicle sales are expected to be flat from a year earlier, at 4.16 million vehicles sold, according to research firm Cox Automotive.
K-Shaped Economy Propels Car Sales
Affluent buyers, who are less sensitive to inflation and rising fuel prices, account for a growing share of vehicle sales. Meanwhile, borrowing costs in recent months receded slightly, helping shoppers offset those added cost pressures.
More car shoppers also are gravitating to hybrid models to avoid high gasoline prices, helping to buoy overall sales volumes. The research firm found that 56% of shoppers say rising gas prices make them more likely to consider a hybrid.
Elevated prices at the pump have not yet sparked a US electric-vehicle revolution, but they have nudged some shoppers to search for fuel-sipping hybrid options. Through May, US hybrid sales rose 17%, according to research firm Motor Intelligence.
Original reporting: Appleton, WI News Feed (HLL/CB) — read the source article.
