U.S.: Annual car sales 1951-2023

The U.S. auto industry sold nearly 3.12 million cars in 2023. That year, total car and light truck sales were approximately 15.5 million in the United States. U.S. vehicle sales peaked in 2016 at roughly 17.5 million units. Pandemic impactThe COVID-19 pandemic deeply impacted the U.S. automotive market, accelerating the global automotive semiconductor shortage and leading to a drop in demand during the first months of 2020. However, as demand rebounded, new vehicle supply could not keep up with the market. U.S. inventory-to-sales ratio dropped to its lowest point in February 2022, as Russia's war on Ukraine lead to gasoline price hikes. During that same period, inflation also impacted new and used car prices, pricing many U.S. consumers out of a market with increasingly lower car stocks. Focus on fuel economyThe U.S. auto industry had one of its worst years in 1982 when customers were beginning to feel the effects of the 1973 oil crisis and the energy crisis of 1979. Since light trucks would often be considered less fuel-efficient, cars accounted for about 77 percent of light vehicle sales back then. Thanks to improved fuel economy for light trucks and cheaper gas prices, this picture had completely changed in 2020. That year, prices for Brent oil dropped to just over 40 U.S. dollars per barrel. The decline occurred in tandem with lower gasoline prices, which came to about 2.17 U.S. dollars per gallon in 2020 - and cars only accounted for less than one-fourth of light vehicle sales that year. 2021 and 2022 had less favorable conditions for auto sales, with Brent oil prices rising and monthly retail gasoline prices peaking in June 2022.

2023年，美国汽车工业销量接近312万辆。当年，美国汽车及轻型卡车总销量约为1550万辆。美国汽车销量于2016年达到峰值，约为1750万辆。新冠疫情的影响COVID-19疫情对美国汽车市场产生了深远影响，加剧了全球汽车半导体短缺，并在2020年第一季度导致需求下降。然而，随着需求的反弹，新车供应无法满足市场。2022年2月，受俄罗斯对乌克兰的战争影响，汽油价格上涨，美国汽车库存与销量比率降至历史最低点。在同一时期，通货膨胀也影响了新旧汽车的价格，使得许多美国消费者因汽车库存的持续减少而被市场边缘化。关注燃油经济性1982年，美国汽车工业经历了一年中最为艰难的一年，当时消费者开始感受到1973年石油危机和1979年能源危机的影响。由于轻型卡车通常被认为燃油效率较低，当时汽车占据了轻型车销量的约77%。得益于轻型卡车的燃油经济性提升和汽油价格的降低，这一状况在2020年发生了根本性变化。那一年，布伦特原油价格降至每桶40多美元。这一下降趋势与汽油价格的降低同步，2020年汽油价格约为每加仑2.17美元——而当年汽车仅占轻型车销量的不到四分之一。2021年和2022年，汽车销量面临不利的条件，布伦特原油价格上涨，2022年6月月度零售汽油价格达到峰值。