While more vehicles are available to shoppers in dealership lots, new car prices are still rising, setting a new record in August.
According to Monday (September 12), the average price paid for a new car in August was $48,301, beating July’s all-time high of $48,080. press release from kelly blue book. New car prices have risen for five consecutive months.
Despite recent improvements, inventory levels remain below those seen in 2019 and 2020, according to the release, with supply in popular vehicle segments remaining particularly low, luxury vehicles sold Several factors contributed to the increase in prices, including an increase in the share of vehicles in the market. .
“Automakers are focused on building and selling high-margin vehicles.” Rebecca Lizhevsky, Research Manager of Economic and Industry Insights at Cox Automotive, the parent company of Kelly Blue Book, said in a release: “Essentially, the product mix is the main factor that keeps the price high.”
Brian Moody, executive editor of the Kelley Blue Book, told PYMNTS that rising vehicle prices will also increase the cost of financing. This is because not only are the cars more expensive, but the higher the loan amount, the higher the interest rate.
“Additionally, due to rising new car prices, some people extend their loan terms, which means more money is spent on extra months of interest,” Moody said. “Finally, access to auto loans fell for the fourth month in a row in August,” he said. likely to see.
Tarek Kabrit, co-founder and CEO of Seez, an online car marketplace based in Dubai, said a huge shortage of new cars globally and long delays in new car deliveries has pushed used car prices into double digits. said to be connected to , told PYMNTS in an interview posted in July.
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However, with interest rates rising, used car price increases are likely to stabilize going forward, and as global competition intensifies in the online auto retail industry, the market is likely to see further consolidation in the coming years. Kabrit says it’s highly reliable.
“It’s part of the game,” Kabrit explains. “Sometimes survival of the fittest happens, and those who get through it are usually better and stronger.”
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https://www.pymnts.com/earnings/2022/blue-apron-ceo-meal-kit-customers-take-price-increases-on-the-chin/partial/
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