May 29, 2020—Analysts expect new vehicle sales to be slightly less than 1.1 million vehicles in May, which would mark a decline of nearly 33 percent compared to May 2019, according to a CNBC report. Those sales figures, however, would be a roughly 50 percent increase over the historically low numbers from this April.
The industry is expected to lose up to 1.6 million retail sales due to the coronavirus pandemic through July, according to J.D. Power.
"We can safely say that April was the bottom for auto sales during the coronavirus pandemic," opined Jessica Caldwell, Edmunds' executive director of insights. "There's still a long road to recovery ahead, but May auto sales are a really encouraging sign for the industry."
May is historically a critical month for the auto industry, because it begins the summer sales season, CNBC noted. And, currently, big discounts, including 0-percent financing offers for up to 84 months, are inspiring some consumers to buy new vehicles.
