US NEW VEHICLE SALES SET TO DECLINE 7.3% IN APRIL, REPORT SAYS

Total new vehicle sales in the U.S., including retail and non-retail transactions, are expected to decline 7.3% year-over-year to 1.36M units for the month of April, J.D. Power and GlobalData said in a joint report on Thursday.

According to the forecast, the seasonally adjusted annualized rate (SAAR) for total new-vehicle sales is expected to be 16 million units, down 1.3 million units from April 2025.

Thomas King, president of OEM Solutions at JD Power, stated that even though April sales are on track to post a solid performance, the “year‑over‑year comparisons still present a challenging picture” and provide limited insight into the underlying health of consumer demand.

Auto sales surged around March and April last year as consumers raced to buy cars to beat the tariff impacts on imported cars and trucks. According to J.D. Power and GlobalData, an additional 53,000 consumers accelerated purchases ahead of anticipated tariff-impacted price increases, making April one of the strongest months of the year and well above the full‑year 2025 pace of 16.3 million units.

New-vehicle retail sales for April 2026 are projected to reach 1,129,100, a 7.3% decrease from April 2025, the data said.

Delving deeper, King noted that affordability continues to constrain the vehicle sales pace even as pricing and financing conditions show modest signs of improvement. Total retail consumer expenditure slipped to $49.9 billion, down $4 billion from a year earlier, as the slower sales pace dragged on overall consumer spending, the data pointed out.

“Average retail transaction prices are trending toward $45,990 in April, essentially unchanged from a year ago, while the average interest rate on new‑vehicle loans is expected to decline 0.3 percentage points to 6.73%. Despite easing borrowing costs, average monthly finance payments are expected to increase 3.1% year over year to $812, driven primarily by continued deterioration in trade‑in equity,” he added.

Meanwhile, David Oakley, manager, Americas vehicle sales forecasts at GlobalData, blamed the Middle East crisis and revised the total global sales in 2026 down to 91.7 million units, compared to an outlook of 92.6 million units a month ago. 

“The downgrade is symbolically significant, since it means that total global volumes are now expected to fall year over year, though the decline would be a modest 0.4%. The conflict in the Middle East is one key factor behind the downward revision, as the downstream consequences of the war on energy prices, GDP growth and consumer confidence start to influence light-vehicle sales forecasts. This is true even for regions with few direct links to the Middle East from a supply chain perspective, such as North America. However, the slow implementation of the new subsidy scheme in China and the cooling of the price war in that market are also notable considerations,” Oakley said.

He further said that April sales are expected to decrease 1.3%.

“Although China could see a positive year on year result, and India’s recent robust growth is likely to continue, declines in North America and the Middle East are forecast to drag the global market into negative territory overall,” noted Oakley.

Auto stocks: Toyota (TM), Tesla (TSLA), General Motors (GM), Honda (HMC), Ferrari (RACE), Ford (F), Hyundai (HYMTF), Nissan (NSANY), Mercedes-Benz (MBGAF), Volkswagen (VLKAF), BMW (BMWYY), Stellantis (STLA), Rivian Automotive (RIVN), and Subaru (OTCPK:FUJHY).

2026-05-21T14:07:30Z