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Economics can help.American automakers are reporting their third quarter earnings, and they're saying revenues are up, but they're also facing some serious headwinds.Or as Mike Wall, an analyst at the automotive data company Mobility Global, put it: If this year was a book about the auto industry, "It would be a mix of suspense and thrills and maybe a little bit of comedy and a little bit of horror."For the thrills: Auto companies are doing well when it comes to selling big cars and light-duty trucks.General Motors reported its sales of light-duty trucks rose 9% in the past year.
Ford's F-Series trucks continue to be a company bestseller.Stellantis' pickup sales in the U.S.
rose 34%.And revenues overall are up: General Motors reported its revenue was up 2.9% in the past year; for Ford it was a 2% rise and Stellantis was up 1%.To analysts, all of this signals that consumers are still buying vehicles — despite concerns about affordability.The average new vehicle transaction price was just over $50,000 in September, close to a record high, according to the Kelley Blue Book.
Broadly speaking, customers are paying more for high-end trims and for bigger vehicles, which tend to be more profitable for the auto companies."Customers have been resilient amid higher fuel prices, interest rates and inflation," said Sherry Ann House, Ford's chief financial officer, on a call with investors.But now for the suspense: The Detroit Three automakers are also cautioning investors that it's getting more expensive to make cars.Key materials like steel, copper and computer chips have all gotten pricier."Should we see prices at this level, it makes that more challenging heading into next year," Paul Jacobson, the chief financial officer of General Motors, said on the company's earnings call.On the call for Stellantis, which owns Chrysler and Jeep, CEO Antonio Filosa noted that higher prices for memory chips and other raw...