Car manufacturers worry about impending slowing of sales at New York auto show



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Also speaking in New York, Klaus Zellmer, President and CEO of Porsche Cars North America, said his company could withstand the downtrend of the market and generate record sales in 2019. However, a tariff 25% would reduce Porsche sales in the United States. not less than 20% this year.

Trade problems are one of the main concerns of the industry. Automakers have already had to adapt to the tariffs on imported aluminum and steel, which, according to Ford and GM, added a billion dollars each in cost increases last year.

Pricing has become one of the main concerns of the industry. Several industry analysts estimate that the new standard vehicle currently sold in the United States costs between $ 34,000 and $ 35,000.

That's something "we're watching closely," said Joe Hinrichs, president of Ford's auto operations, in a recent interview.

Automakers have tried to offset rising costs by offering financial incentives, subsidized leases and longer loans. But what Hyundai Smith calls "an element of affordability" will become harder to deal with, he said. On the one hand, it is difficult to spread the loans over 72 months, or six years. Even then, motorists are now "upside down" with loans so long that they often have to wait before buying a new vehicle because they would find otherwise than their old cars have less recovery value compared to what they still owe to the bank.

Unless there is a major international crisis or a sudden economic crisis, auto industry representatives and observers are convinced that the US market will not collapse soon. Even in case of declining demand, it will not be as bad as they saw at the beginning of the decade. But they are also concerned that many factors that may affect the market are out of their control and could still cause serious problems.

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