IRVINE, CA – According to a new report released by Kelley Blue Book, the average price of a new car in the United States in August of 2023 was $48,451, which is a mere 0.6 percent increase from the month before and only $42 up year-over-year, representing the fact that the auto market has begun to stabilize following skyrocketing prices brought about by pandemic era-related supply shortages.
In addition, average transaction prices (ATPs) have decreased $1,212 dollars since January of this year – or 2.4 percent – which is the largest amount that number has gone down in the past ten years according to Rebecca Rydzewski, research manager at Kelley Blue Book parent company Cox Automotive.
After a tumultuous last few years in the automotive marketplace, now we are seeing new-vehicle pricing trends hold steady,” she said. “Dealers and automakers are feeling price pressure, and with high auto loan rates and growing inventory levels, new-vehicle prices seem to have hit a ceiling, at least for now.”
As for the recently-announced strike of United Auto Workers against Detroit’s Big Three automakers – General Motors, Ford, and Stellantis – Rydzewski said that she doesn’t expect it to have much of an impact upon current car prices as long as it remains short term; a prolonged spell at the picket line, however, could have more substantial consequences.
We don’t expect a short-lived strike to impact consumer prices in any meaningful way,” she said. “At least in the near term.”
Prices of non-luxury cars in August 2023 year-over-year were essentially flat, with prices up only 0.7 percent; in addition, prices of non-luxury vehicles decreased from July 2023 by $169.
As a result of the stabilization of the new automobile market, automakers and dealers have increased the incentives they have been offering to consumers, although they have not risen yet to the levels seen prior to the pandemic. These incentives, which are often given in the form of discounts, accounted for 4.9 percent of the average new car transition price in August, a 2.3 percent increase from one year prior.
However, during pre-pandemic years, that ATP discount percentage was often significantly higher; for example, it was 10.8 percent in August 2020.
Christopher Boyle is an investigative journalist, videographer, reporter and writer for SEARCHEN NETWORKS® as well as other independent news and media organizations in the United States. Christopher works on a wide variety of topics and fields, has been featured in print and online in a variety of publications, from local to national, and helps keep a keen-eye on what’s happening in the automotive world for Auto Buyers Market.