The December numbers have come in from the automakers (source, source, source).
Ford up 33%
GM down 6.1%
Chrysler/Fiat down 4%
Toyota up 32.3%
Honda up 24.5%
Nissan up 18.2%
Hyundai up 41%
Subaru up 33%
Overall that was a SAAR of 11.25 million cars and trucks, up from 10.3 million a year ago. Of note was the fact that the numbers gave Asian automakers a larger annual market share of vehicles sold than US manufacturers for the first time in history. Also, GMAC will post a $5 billion loss in Q4. That explains the fact that the US government just had to invest another $3.8 billion, in the process becoming the majority shareholder of GMAC. Don’t think of it as a continued bailout of the auto industry via taxpayer subsidized financing, think of it as a really stupid investment.
