First-quarter sales numbers are rolling in, with General Motor's reporting double-digit increases as U.S. sales soared for the third consecutive quarter.
GM reported an 18% increase in sales, which hit 600,000 units, with volume up:
16% at Chevrolet
7.6% at GMC
99% at Buick
29% at Cadillac
Overall, GM reported U.S. retail sales rose 15%, and fleet sales, representing 25% of deliveries, jumped 27% in the first quarter.
According to the automaker, the quarter ended with 412,285 cars and light trucks in dealer stock or in transit, similar to the company’s fourth-quarter numbers.
Toyota reported March sales dipped 9.1%, with the Toyota division down 12% and Lexus up 12%.
The automaker ended March with 142,958 cars and light trucks in stock, 116,108 of those units at port or in transit, equal to a 22-day supply. The Toyota division reported 112,420 vehicles in inventory, while Lexus had 30,538 cars and light trucks to start April, a spokesperson told Automotive News.
Honda Motor Co. reported U.S. sales rebounded in the first quarter. Hyundai and Kia set sales records in March and reported first-quarter gains.
Sales grew 8% at American Honda in March, with deliveries up 8.8% at the Honda division and 2.6% at Acura. The growth represents the automaker's second gain in 2023 after a 1.4% decline in February and 14% increase in January.
The Honda brand reported 38,000 cars and light trucks in stock at the end of March, while Acura had 22,000 units on hand.
Nissan reported a 17% increase in the first quarter after reporting six consecutive quarterly declines. Sales increased 16% for the Nissan division and 40% for Infiniti.
Hyundai reported volume rose 27% to 75,404 in March, with retail deliveries increasing 15% to 68,312. Hyundai reported fleet sales accounted for 9.4% of March volume. The automaker closed March with 53,119 cars and light trucks in U.S. inventory, significantly above the 17,271 a year earlier.
U.S. sales grew 20% to 71,294 at Kia, marking the automaker’s fifth consecutive month of a 20-plus% gain. Kia reported its Carnival, Sportage, Telluride and Forte models set March records and that its sales of electrified models increased 10%.
Subaru sales soared 23% to hit 32,213 on strong light-truck deliveries, while March volume rose 5.3% at Mazda.
U.S. sales at Genesis hit a monthly record, with volume up 23%, marking its fifth straight gain on higher crossover deliveries.
