(Bobit) — Near-record-high new-vehicle inventories and rising interest rates for floorplan financing are eating away at dealership profits, according to a new report in Automotive News. The AN Data Center puts the supply of unsold vehicles at 4,188,200 at the start of April. That’s only about 100,000 fewer than factories and dealers had on hand in May 2004, the all-time record high, and more than half a million more than were reported at this time in 2007, on the eve of the Great Recession.
The biggest overstockers are the Detroit 3 manufacturers: Fiat Chrysler leads the nation with a full 90-day supply (666,700 units), then Ford (84 days/715,600 units), then General Motors (83/835,500). Together, they account for more than half of America’s unsold new cars and light trucks.












