Have Automakers Stopped Reporting Monthly Sales To Hide Bad News?
Every second week of the month, the industry trade rag Automotive News publishes the monthly and year-to-date sales numbers for most models of light vehicles sold in the U.S. Those dizzying columns of digits represent the electrocardiogram of the auto industry, closely watched by the automakers, their suppliers and dealers, and the thousands of other businesses that depend on the trade. However, this summer, the last of the domestic automakers pulled the figurative plug on the machine, with Ford and FCA joining GM and Tesla in declaring they will only supply sales figures every quarter.
