Sales slow at 4 carmakers; interest-rate concerns cited

Four of the biggest U.S. automakers missed analysts’ estimates for April sales, with Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV posting the biggest drop, as consumers struggle to finance new vehicles with costlier loans.

Fiat Chrysler deliveries fell 6.1% and Toyota Motor Corp.’s dipped 4.4%, trailing projections for a month in which industry demand is usually expected to slow. Nissan Motor Co.’s bounce back from a disastrous month a year ago was more tempered than analysts were estimating, and Honda Motor Co. sales were little changed.

Concern about interest rates appears to be giving consumers pause, especially as average vehicle prices creep higher, according to Jessica Caldwell, an analyst for Edmunds. She called financing conditions “harsh,” with the car-shopping researcher finding interest rates on new-car purchases have hovered above 6% every month this year.

Nissan, whose total sales rose 9%, credited cut-rate financing offers with helping boost its redesigned Altima sedan in April, and the automaker is expanding that program to its Rogue SUV this month. “With some sensitivity to interest rates, offering a special rate has done well for us,” said Billy Hayes, a division vice president for Nissan North America.

Fiat Chrysler announced after its third-straight monthly U.S. sales decline that it’s going to shift to quarterly reporting. The company is taking after General Motors, which made the switch a year ago, and Ford, which followed suit beginning in January.

The top three automakers are killing off several slow-selling passenger cars from their lineup. The shift to sharing results on a quarterly basis is to some extent aimed at trying to avoid focusing attention on the volatility those moves will cause.

Honda eked out a gain of 0.1 percent, as the new Passport sport utility vehicle helps offset declines for cars, including the Accord sedan.

While vehicle deliveries are slowing, automakers are getting more bang for their buck on each sale. Average prices likely climbed to the highest seen so far this year, according to Edmunds.