October truck sales could reveal strength of recovery
Monthly auto sales, which are reported Thursday, should be the news highlight of the week.
Everybody knows sales will be down, of course. The question is, by how much, and whether the results tell the market anything about the strength or stubbornness of the economic recovery underfoot.
I think October sales will be a more important indicator, given that inventory will have been replenished and consumers will have had time to adjust to the idea that the worst might be behind us.
October has long been truck month, when automakers roll out their big discounts on prior model year trucks.
GM has launched its annual fall truck incentive program, which runs through early November, Automotive News reports. Ford Motor runs a similar program every year, but GM had considered pulling back on the annual event and spending its marketing dollars on building its post-bankruptcy brand.
With the biggest car stimulus of the decade, the federal cash-for-clunkers program behind us, I’m guessing there will be many takers on big trucks, which will give profits a boost as long as automakers don’t discount too heavily.
If truck sales don’t see a respectable uptick in October, that doesn’t bode well for the strength of the economic recovery under way. – Freep
- TechNews
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