Sector Morsel

February 2023

Autos will put the pedal-to-the-metal as shortages ease

Key takeaways

  • While consumer spending grew strongly in 2022, auto sales struggled. This reflected the big global supply chain squeeze, which severely diminished new car inventories.
  • Bank of America internal data suggests that car sales were weakest with older buyers (Gen Xers and Baby Boomers) since 2020, while sales to Millennial buyers were stronger in both the new and used car markets.
  • While supply chain pressures are easing in 2023, in autos there may be still some road left to run before things revert to more ‘normal’ conditions, which may keep the brakes on sales this year. The good news is that as supply improves into 2024, we think car sales should be in a very good position to help drive a surge in consumption.

 

Read our full analysis for a more in-depth look at these trends.