Car dealers had a very good August. That may signal the U.S. economy is finally getting dealt a better hand.
General Motors, GM +4.77% Ford Motor, F +3.37% Toyota Motor 7203.TO +0.32% and Chrysler Group on Wednesday all reported a strong increase in light-vehicle sales last month, to an annualized 16.1 million cars, according to Autodata, the strongest since October 2007. Industry watcher WardsAuto had expected 15.7 million, while Kelley Blue Book was looking for 15.6 million, suggesting that a late-month lift pushed sales higher.
Demand looks set to remain strong through the remainder of 2013, with dealers running short of some popular vehicles. Ford said it plans to raise production by 7% year over year in the fourth quarter to 785,000 vehicles.