North America Light-Vehicle Production Grew 9.0% in May

North America light-vehicle production totaled 1,574,207 units in May, rising 9.0% over year-ago’s 1,443,768.

Mexico once again saw the most improvement, climbing 19.9% to 330,078 units. Huge gains from both car (+12.3%) and light-truck (+29.8%) assembly brought the country’s share of the region up to 21% from 19% in 2016.  

Volkswagen production soared 58.2% to 51,950 units. Strong output from Nissan (+15.8%) and Toyota (+19.8%) also contributed to the growth.  

Kia’s Monterrey, Mexico, plant expanded production of Forte and Rio models to 14,475 units, more than six times year-ago’s 1,931 units.

Year-to-date, Mexico’s total of 1,579,802 was 17.3% ahead of same-period 2016, with several new models added to the tally since last year.

Automakers in Canada boosted production 7.5% in May to 209,454 LVs, after a slow April. Car output dipped 0.4% to 66,918 but was balanced by an 11.6% increase in light-truck production to 142,536.

General Motors (+15.6%) and FCA (+11.6%) saw double-digit gains, and Toyota production grew 5.8% to 54,193 LVs.

It was a rocky five months for manufacturers in Canada, with total builds down 3.4% to 984,774 units through May.

Production in the U.S. grew 6.3% to a total of 1,034,675 for the month, despite gloomy sales forecasts and swollen inventory. Light-truck output increased 11.0% to 722,898, while car production fell 3.2%, extending a 9-month stretch of slowdowns.

Despite increased Santa Fe production, Hyundai’s total was flat (-0.7%) with year-ago at 33,900 units due to reduced car output.

BMW, the biggest exporter by value for the U.S. auto industry, saw a 2.4% boost to 36,904 X-Series models in May. However, production was down 2.8% year-to-date.

Even after a booming May, year-to-date production in the U.S. was down 3.0% from year-ago with 4,858,590 LVs.

Looking at the region as a whole, several automakers recorded best-ever May totals. Kia soared 36.7% to 47,352 units, Toyota was up 7.7% to 179,915 and Nissan improved 12.0% to 168,352.

Light trucks made up much of the growth, with CUVs increasing 15.3% to 486,877 and Vans up 20.3% to 97,618.

North America’s 5-month total inched up 0.7% to 7,423,166 LVs amid lingering questions about NAFTA’s future.

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