LMC: U.S. Car Sales Will Dip This Year

Light-vehicle sales in the U.S. will continue to grow through 2023, predicts LMC Automotive. But the firm says volume will slip this year for the first time since 2009.

Chief forecaster Jeff Schuster says LMC trimmed its forecasts through 2023 by an annual average of 250,000 units because of unknowns surrounding the upcoming presidential election and the effect of the U.K.’s decision to exit the European Union.

The biggest downward adjustment is for this year. LMC now expects light-vehicle sales to total 17.4 million units in 2016, down 300,000 units from its previous forecast. The new target is about 40,000 units below last year’s all-time record of 17.44 million sales. Schuster says almost all the decline this year will come in the retail rather than fleet segment of the market.

LMC expects vehicle demand in the U.S. will resume gradual growth in 2017, reaching 18 million units in 2021 and about 18.4 million by 2023. The forecast assumes the U.S. economy will expand at an average 2% pace during the forecast period.