It was a good month for auto sales despite inclement weather across much of the country and surging oil prices. Cars sold near an annual pace of 13 million vehicles. That would make February the best on record since the "cash for clunkers" rebate program in 2009.
Major automakers are set to release February sales figures on Tuesday, and analysts expect the reports will show sales improved 20% compared to a year ago. Consumers continued to warm to the slowly improving economy -- so far, despite surging oil prices.
In the State of the Union address in January, President Barack Obama set a goal of getting 1 million electric cars on the road by 2015. Now he's proposed $7,500 rebates, instead of tax credits, to reach that goal. Will that be enough to make it doable?
Asian markets rose today with investors piling into oil companies as the price of oil passed the $100 a barrel mark. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index inched up 0.2%, the Shanghai Composite Index added 0.3%, and Japan's Nikkei 225 Index edged up 0.4%.
A slowly brightening economy combined with low financing rates and generally stable fuel prices have put consumers in a buying mood. New models, particularly from Ford and GM, are also helping to keep U.S. auto sales on a positive trajectory as 2011 starts.
Continuing unrest in Egypt sent shock waves through stock markets as far away as Japan, where the Nikkei 225 Index fell 1.2%. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index also dropped 0.7%. In China the Shanghai Composite Index climbed 1.4%.
In Asia Thursday the Shanghai Composite Index climbed 1.5% to 2,749 and the Hang Seng Index fell 0.3% to 23,780. In Japan the Nikkei 225 Index advanced 0.7% to end the day at 10,479.
Last year's massive recalls -- and the resulting legal fallout -- have given Toyota's reputation a beating, cutting into its sales. But the company can't blame all of its problems on the recalls. Analysts also point to another issue: A lack of compelling new models.
Asian shares were mixed Monday. In China the Shanghai Composite Index fell 0.7% and in Hong Kong the Hang Seng Index edged down 0.3% as investors worried that inflation could rise further in the lead-up to Chinese New Year. However, Japan's Nikkei 225 Index climbed 0.7%.
The nation's automakers ended 2010 strong, with most reporting higher sales for December. Consumers seemed to put concerns about the U.S. economy on hold and more than offset reduced demand by fleet customers, such as corporations and rental-car companies.
The economy may be less robust than most Americans would like, but that didn't stop many of them from hitting the showrooms in December. That likely propelled auto sales in the final month of 2010 to 1.13 million units, the year's highest levels.
Nissan and Mitsubishi plan to work together to bring some new vehicles to market. The Japanese automakers will establish a joint venture to produce a minicar for the home market by 2012, while Nissan will produce a small van for Mitsubishi, which in turn will make an SUV for Nissan.
It's traditionally one of the slowest months of the year for vehicle sales, but most automakers reported higher U.S. sales in November compared to a year ago, despite continued consumer caution about the slow economic recovery.
Year-over-year gains are again likely when automakers report November U.S. sales figures Wednesday. But a drop from this October's level is on tap. Detroit probably fared better than its foreign counterparts as sales rebounded further from last year's anemic levels.
