hit

Average new car price hit record $47,077 in December

By Betty C. Morrow 4 days ago

Check out what’s clicking on FoxBusiness.com.

The car business is on a streak, but it’s bad one for consumers.

Auto dealership

Auto dealerships have record low inventories. (Jeff Gritchen/MediaNews Group/Orange County Register via Getty Images)

The average price paid for a new vehicle set a ninth-straight monthly record in December of $47,077, according to Kelley Blue Book.

New car incentives have hit five-year lows. (Jeff Gritchen/MediaNews Group/Orange County Register via Getty Images)

Low inventories caused by ongoing supply chain issues combined with high demand driven by an improving economy have reduced incentives to a five-year low and driven automakers to prioritize production of their most profitable models.

Lots at many dealerships are nearly empty, forcing operators to park the vehicles they have in strategic positions.

Lots at many dealerships are nearly empty, forcing operators to park the vehicles they have in strategic positions. (Jeff Gritchen/MediaNews Group/Orange County Register via Getty Images)

“December typically is the best month for luxury vehicle sales, and 2021 followed that trend in a big

… Read More

Almost 10m less cars built in 2021 as supply chain issues hit production

By Betty C. Morrow 3 weeks ago

Nearly 10m fewer cars were built this year due to supply chain issues and a semiconductor shortage, analysts say.

Research by market intelligence group LMC Automotive estimated a 9.6m global shortfall in the number of light vehicles produced through 2021. European carmakers are expected to have suffered the biggest hit, producing 3m fewer vehicles as they struggled to get hold of supplies.

Semiconductors have been one of the biggest pain points in global supply chains, with delays, production disruption and hoarding spurred by the Covid-19 pandemic leading to a severe shortage.

The crisis is still running, LMC said, with the situation for car makers unlikely to substantially improve until the second half of 2022, and the gulf between chip demand and supply taking until 2023 to close.

Justin Cox, the group’s head of global production, said the outlook had improved slightly in recent weeks as emergency measures boosted production.

“I

… Read More

Car production curbs hit TomTom amid chip shortage

By Betty C. Morrow 3 months ago

(Reuters) – Dutch navigation and digital mapping company TomTom warned on Thursday supply chain problems in the auto sector could last until the first half of next year after it reported a bigger than expected quarterly core loss.

FILE PHOTO: TomTom logo is seen on a vehicle in Eindhoven, Netherlands, November 21, 2019. REUTERS/Eva Plevier/File Photo

Auto production has been hammered by a global shortage in semiconductor chips, which has forced carmakers still recovering from last year’s coronavirus disruptions to halt production again.

“Collectively we have underestimated how big the supply chain issues, and especially for semiconductor shortages, have been or have become”, Chief Financial Officer Taco Titulaer told Reuters.

Titulaer added TomTom’s consumer and automotive revenue numbers would continue to be affected by these challenges.

The group said the recovery of its automotive division, which supplies maps and navigation software to carmakers, lagged expectations as it saw sales fall

… Read More

Sticker shock: Average new car prices hit a record $41,000 in July

By Betty C. Morrow 6 months ago

Test drive: 2021 Honda Ridgeline

The Honda Ridgeline has been redesigned for 2021 to make it look more like a traditional pickup, but Fox News Autos Editor Gary Gastelu says it remains a unique option in the midsize class.

The number of new cars being sold is from record levels, but the prices being paid for them are the highest ever.

According to the J.D. Power and LMC Automotive Forecast, the average transaction price for a new vehicle is projected to be $41,044 during the month of July, a 17% increase over last year.

High demand is meeting low inventories caused by the ongoing semiconductor shortage hampering production across the industry, which has led to a drop in incentives and more cars selling for list price or even more.

“Eight percent consumers are paying near or above MSRP, which is driving up dealer profitability over 200% compared to 2019. But

… Read More