On May 14, 2021, in Colma, California, brand new Chevrolet automobiles are shown on the sales lot at Stewart Chevrolet. Getty Images/Justin Sullivan DETROIT (AP) — GM’s second-quarter U.S. car sales fell short of analyst projections due to a continuing shortage of semiconductor chips, which hampered vehicle production and dealer inventories. The Detroit carmaker recorded sales of 688,236 automobiles in the second quarter, up 39.7% from a year ago, when the coronavirus pandemic forced Americans to seek refuge and forced auto showrooms to close temporarily. According to Edmunds and Cox Automotive, analysts predicted that GM’s sales would rise by 40 percent to 43 percent. “Consumer demand for automobiles is likewise strong, but stocks are extremely low. In the second half of this year and into 2022, we anticipate ongoing high demand “GM’s chief economist, Elaine Buckberg, said in a statement. On Thursday, GM will be one of the first big manufacturers to report second-quarter sales. Analysts expect that automakers sold roughly 4.5 million vehicles in the second quarter in the United States, up 52 percent to 53 percent from the second quarter of 2020. While the sales rebound from the pandemic’s depths has been tremendous, the rate of sales is decreasing this year. According to Deutsche Bank analyst Emmanuel Rosner, sales in June would be 15.7 million automobiles, down from 17.1 million in May and 18.6 million in April. During an appearance on CNBC’s “Squawk on the Street” on Thursday, former Ford CEO Mark Fields, a TPG Capital senior advisor, said, “The market demand is there, but the inventory is not.”/n
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