the automotive industry
At just under 6.6 million kilometers in 2020 (approximately 4.1 million miles), the United States boasted the most extended road network worldwide. These long distances are an incentive toward mass motorization: As of 2022, over 76 percent of the U.S. population reported having access to their own car, with an additional 19 percent having access to a company or family car. The high motor vehicle demand in the country fuels an active automotive industry. With over 1.5 trillion U.S. dollars in revenue from road vehicle and parts retail trade, the sector has swiftly recovered from the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the global automotive chip shortage is a challenge to the automotive industry, and the monthly inventory-to-sales ratio has been nosediving since April 2020.
A market rooted in light trucks and U.S. automakers
Amid the semiconductor shortage, light trucks remain the most popular vehicle type in the country. U.S. light truck sales amounted to under 11.6 million units in 2021, rebounding by around five percent compared to 2020. Meanwhile, the number of cars sold in the U.S. has been decreasing from a staggering 11.4 million units in 1973 to a little over 3.3 million units in 2021, as U.S. consumer demand has been shifting to larger vehicles over the past few decades.
General Motors, Chrysler LLC, and Ford Motor are the key American automakers, although Chrysler LLC is a fully-owned subsidiary of the Europe-based Stellaris. In addition to these carmakers, Tesla’s market share is rising due to the increasing acceptance of electric vehicles. General Motors is the vehicle manufacturer with the highest market share, followed by Toyota and Ford.