Industry perspectives

2015 Auto Industry Trends

Even with recent global sales gains, automakers must navigate three powerful forces to build market share now and widen profits from their rapidly changing products.

The worldwide automotive industry has been enjoying a period of relatively strong growth and profitability, and annual sales have reached prerecession levels in some regions. Yet considerable uncertainty about the future remains.

The most immediate challenge is the unevenness of global markets. Auto industry executives and experts tend to be optimistic about the U.S. market, forecasting annualized sales in North America in the near term of a relatively robust 16 million cars, up from only 13 million in 2008. However, the outlook in Europe is much weaker as the region is emerging fitfully from a six-year sales slump. And sales have plunged in Russia and South America — they were down by about 25 percent and 15 percent, respectively, in August 2014 year-over-year. Meanwhile, the Indian market’s performance has been inconsistent. And growth in China — the world’s largest vehicle market — has slowed, even though investments by most original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), which are betting big on future demand, continue to ramp up. Reacting strategically to these demand shifts will be an absolute priority for industry leaders in 2015.