July Light-Vehicle Inventory Down

Plant vacation shutdowns, model changeovers and relatively robust July sales combined to cut 143,700-plus units from the month-end U.S. dealer light-vehicle inventory count to 2,654,003, as days’ supply fell to 55 from 48.

Still, both figures were well above the anemic 1,969,343-unit 48 days’ supply posted in July 2011, when Japanese-make production was just beginning to recover from the widespread production shutdowns brought on by springtime natural disasters.

Some shifting of vacation downtime normally scheduled for the first two weeks in July helped the Detroit Three provide dealers with nearly 200,000, or 16.2%, more cars and light trucks at the end of last month compared with like-2011. But remaining downtime nevertheless trimmed dealer stock 6.2% compared with June.

However, the unit-stock decline held the days’-supply barometer in check on the high-side of the normal range at 68, the same as prior-month. A year ago it read 63 days’.

Asian-brand dealers saw their LV inventory slip 4.7% behind prior-month in July, a loss of 51,000-plus units that trimmed the already-weak 52 days’ supply to just 46.

All Japanese-brand dealers, except Acura, Lexus, Mazda and Nissan, had fewer LVs in stock last month than they did the in June, although several showed month-over-month days’-supply increases as the July selling pace eased.

Still, that is a far cry from like-2011, when dealers suffered a dearth of stock due to lengthy plants shutdowns resulting from disaster-related parts shortages.

As they have for some time, South Korean auto makers Hyundai and Kia, each at 21 days’, posted among the lowest inventory readings in the industry, although last month’s absolute low was BMW’s mere 15.

Other European brands saw a slight uptick in July’s month-end unit inventory to 216,123 units from 215,148 in June, although days’ supply dipped to 47 from 49, thanks mainly to a 14.1% gain at Volkswagen.

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