Toyota overtakes GM in becoming top selling automaker in US
By Shubhangi on Jan 05, 2022 | 05:35 AM IST
• Toyota outsold GM by roughly 114,000 vehicles in the full-year 2021
• GM has been leading U.S. auto sales since 1931
Japanese automaker Toyota Motor Corp has overtaken General Motors Co as the top selling car company in the U.S. for the last year.
GM has been leading U.S. auto sales since 1931.
Toyota outsold GM by roughly 114,000 vehicles in the full-year 2021 while its total U.S. sales was 2.3 million which is up about 10% compared to 2020.
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GM, on the other hand, reported nearly 13% fall in sales with a total of 2.2 million vehicles sold in 2021 due to semiconductor shortage. Several manufacturing operations were affected by the shortages resulting in fewer vehicles to sell.
Sales growth
Other automakers such as Tesla Inc. also reported surge in U.S. sales in 2021 while Hyundai Motor Co sold 738,081 vehicles in 2021, a 19% increase from the prior year. Volkswagen AG and BWM AG also reported stronger-than-average sales in the last year.
According to research firm J.D. Power, automakers sold almost 15 million vehicles in the U.S. last year. The total sales is slightly higher than 2020 but is still quite low compared to pre-pandemic times.
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Even though the demand remains high, but due to the chip shortage, automakers are unable to sell vehicles. Chip shortage is expected to gradually ease in the coming months, but vehicle sales might still be low for the year.
Picture Credits: Reuters