Honda reports 4% sales dip in Oct.

Bright spots also are pointed out, including climbing truck sales.

Honda sales fell 4 percent in October compared to the same month last year, according to recent sales figures released by the company.

The auto manufacturer reported 122,182 in sales last month, compared to 127,353 in October 2017. Sales through the first 10 months of this year are down about 2 percent compared to last year, although Honda hit an all-time sales record in 2017. Even though sales are down compared to last year, Honda said it was the company’s fourth-best October sales month of all time.

“With production across our entire Honda and Acura lineups in alignment to meet true consumer demand, we continue to achieve steady and sustainable results as we enter the final two months of the year,” said Henio Arcangeli Jr., senior vice president of the American Honda Automobile Division in a news release.

The automaker, one of the region’s largest employers, also reported several bright spots. Honda saw truck sales climb slightly more than 5 percent compared to the same month last year. The Acura RDX, which is assembled at Honda’s facility in Marysville, saw sales jump 75 percent compared to October 2017.

While the company’s truck sales are up about 5 percent for the year so far compared to 2017, car sales are down almost 10 percent.

Sales of the company’s Accord sedan are down almost 14 percent through the first 10 months of the year.

Sales of the compact Civic sedan are down about 12 percent so far this year.

About 1,400 workers from Clark and Champaign counties work for the automaker, and it employs about 14,500 Ohioans overall.

Rising interest rates are contributing to a decline in sales for several auto makers including Ford and Mazda, according to information from Edmunds, a car shopping and information website.

The annual percentage rate for new financed vehicles averaged 6.2 percent in October, up about 1.3 percent compared to one year ago, according to information from the site.

Ford’s October sales were down 4 percent compared to 2017 while Nissan saw sales fall 11 percent, according to information from Edmunds.

Hyundai’s sales were basically flat. Toyota saw sales tick up 1 percent, while Subaru and Kia saw slight gains. Contact this reporter at 937-3280355 or email Matt.Sanctis@ coxinc.com.