Dear Reader,  First, thank you for your support and patronage of Auto Finance News. Since 1996, we have had the great honor of serving the auto finance industry – we hope to continue to do so with distinction for many years to come.  Second, the truth is we have been confounded by one distinct challenge since 1996: to definitively determine whether the auto finance market is strong or weak. Oh, we receive and report on plenty of market indicators — this is one of our core obligations. But what we have longed for is a more definitive dataset that tells the current story of auto financ ..read more

The auto finance industry strengthened in January driven, in part, by a more favorable capital market for auto finance assets.   The Auto Finance Composite Index, a new dataset developed by Auto Finance News and made public today, indicates that the auto finance industry improved in January. The index rose to 127.73 in January compared with 103.94 in December 2023 and 129.78 in January 2023, indicating the auto finance industry’s performance was stronger sequentially but slightly weaker year over year.   The new Auto Finance Composite Index determines the health of the auto ..read more

New-vehicle average transaction prices fell to their lowest level in nearly two years in March, driven by a recovery in supply and a rise in incentives.   The ATP for new vehicles decreased 1% month over month to $47,218, down 1% year over year, according to Kelley Blue Book. Affordability also improved as the number of ..read more

First-quarter earnings kicked off last week with banks reporting a decline in auto originations. Chase Auto and Wells Fargo Auto’s origination volume decreased year over year in Q1, while outstandings were mixed. Chase Auto’s originations ticked down 3.3% YoY to $8.9 billion, while loan and lease outstandings increased 9.2% YoY to $87.7 billion. Wells Fargo’s ..read more

Do you have what it takes to create a new future for the auto finance industry? Join the ‘Spark Tank’ Workshop on Wednesday, May 1, at 1:15 p.m. ET and kick the conference off with a new twist on the workshop model. Based on the format of a popular TV show, this session will have attendees thinking on their feet, showing off and cultivating entrepreneurial skills, networking with peers and deepening their understanding of current market conditions. During the workshop, attendees will work together in groups to create an idea for building a successful startup that addresses a challenge or gap i ..read more

Tesla Inc. will slash global headcount by more than 10%, Elon Musk wrote in an email to staff, as the carmaker grapples with a slowdown in electric vehicle demand. The chief executive officer cited duplication of roles and the need to reduce cost as reasons for the cuts in the memo seen by Bloomberg News ..read more

Wells Fargo Auto tallied a dip in origination volume during the first quarter as the bank’s auto book continued to shrink. Auto loan originations landed at $4.1 billion, down 18% year over year but up 24.2% on a linked-quarter basis, according to the bank’s earnings supplement. Performance across the San Francisco-based bank’s consumer and commercial ..read more

Chase Auto’s first-quarter originations dipped year over year as the bank prioritized margins.   Auto originations totaled $8.9 billion in Q1 2024, down 10.1% quarter over quarter and 3.3% YoY, according to JPMorgan Chase’s earnings supplement released today.   Auto finance volume ticked down as the bank “maintained healthy margins and market share,” Jeremy Barnum, chief ..read more

The share of leased EVs more than doubled year over year in the first quarter as the EV sales rate continued to slow.  In Q1, roughly 27% of all EVs were leased, largely because many leased EVs qualify for the full $7,500 federal tax credit under the Inflation Reduction Act, according to Kelley Blue Book.   EV sales ..read more

Ongoing credit tightening at CarMax Auto Finance paved the way for allowance for credit loss reductions as the lender’s portfolio grew in the fiscal fourth quarter.   Allowance for credit losses (ACL) on the captive’s $17.4 billion auto loan portfolio landed at 2.78% of the portfolio for the fiscal fourth quarter of 2024 ended Feb ..read more