As we reported yesterday, General Motors has posted its earnings for the fourth quarter of 2019, showing a $194 million loss on $30.8 billion in revenue. However, now that the complete GM trucks lineup has officially launched, the 2020 calendar year is shaping up to look much more profitable for the automaker.
“Chevrolet and GMC full-size pickups drove GM’s underlying business performance in 2019,” GM explains in a press release on the 2019 fourth-quarter earnings numbers. “Combined sales of the Chevrolet Silverado and the GMC Sierra were strong, totaling 802,962 pickups, while combined retail market share grew almost one full percentage point, according to J.D. Power.”
Crucially, GM launched the final variants of the Silverado and Sierra heavy-duty pickups in Q4 of 2019, namely the low-cost, Regular Cab entry trim levels. As such, the latest full-size GM trucks lineup is now complete, and the company will benefit from a full year of these highly profitable vehicles heading into the 2020 calendar year.
It’s also worth mentioning that Q4 of 2019 was significantly impacted by the United Auto Workers strike, which lasted for 40 days and disrupted both GM vehicle production and the parts supply chain. In Q4, the UAW strike resulted in four weeks of production loss, reducing sales by 191,000 units year-over-year and hitting GM’s bottom line hard.
As we covered earlier in January, GM sales in the U.S. decreased 6.3 percent to 735,909 units in Q4 of 2019, with sales dropping for all four GM brands in the market, including Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, and GMC.
However, now that the new full-size GM trucks launch is complete and GM is operating with a new ratified labor contract (and thus, no production disruptions like those experienced in 2019 are expected), the 2020 calendar year should prove to be significantly different from 2019.
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Comments
I don’t care about what lies you want to write the bottom line is the 2019 Silverado isn’t the best looking inside an out plus with all the quality issues put it in 3rd place let’s use common sense people if someone wanted to buy the Silverado they would have waited for the Silverado the excuse of them bringing them out late is fake news!!!!!!!
You seem to severely lack general common sense.
When you sell an apple for $5 per unit while your rival is selling an apple for $3 per unit, it’s only natural for you to sell less apples but make more money. That’s what took place with all GM full-size trucks during the 2019 calendar year, and GM made more money than all of its rivals (more than Ford and more than FCA). If you think that’s “fake news” or bad in any other way, then you are simply delusional
Answer me this: what will happen on January 5, 2021 – when GM reports its full year 2020 sales, which show the Silverado selling like gangbusters and catching up to or overtaking F-Series? Will you promise to eat crow? Asking for a friend.
Of course he lacks common senses Alex. What else did you expect from a guy who doesn’t have any punctuation in his entire rant?
.. you’re not have as brilliant as you think you are, Alexis.
That grade school apple analogy is hysterical and mathematically wrong.
Those 5 “college degrees” and still writing on a blog. Go, You!
What’s hilarious is you don’t provide any alternative ideas to what Alex said. Smells like a mix of jealousy and stupidity on your part. Are you jealous of Alex’s success?
By the way – I enjoy GMA daily and thank Alex and the team for creating it.
@Einstein: What’s in your garage?
lol I thought you guys were drinking the Kool Aid, but if you think they’re going to outsell Ford this year it’s gotta be something stronger than Kool Aid.
Ok. I’ll bet you publicly, right here and right now, that GM will outsell Ford in full-size trucks in the 2020 calendar year.
My only condition is that production disruptions such as strikes, parts shortages, etc. are not taken into account by this bet. In other words, if there are these circumstances, then all bets are off.
I for one have never liked the name Silverado
Yes I know it’s stupid but the name has never moved me even though I have bought numerous Chevy pickups. Currently I own a GMC 2019..
How many more Silverado pickup trucks would GM have sold if the current generation did not look like some weird offspring of a Toyota Tundra?
Now we have Chevrolet doubling down with the HD version!
The Sierra is far better looking, albeit that it does have those asymmetrical wheel openings that appear to be going in the wrong direction.
The Silverado should be outselling the RAM by 50,000 units.
And please GM don’t attempt to blame the strike.
Time to take away the Chevrolet “designers’” crayons or send them back to Toyota.
Let the GMC design team fix the Silverado ASAP.
As a 40 year GM owner and proud owner of an iconic and almost still perfect 1999 Yukon, I thank you.
I hope gm dumps the lousy 8 speed for the 2021 model year. Just give the 2.7 and the 5.3 the 10 speed standard, like the 6.2 and 3.0. And quit the the 4.3 and old 5.3, show confidence in your technology for the commercial market and give them the 2.7 and 5.3, with a 10 speed.
Totally agree! The Colorado & Canyon should have the 10-speed as well. The 2.7 turbo should be an option too.
For the Silverado & Sierra GM needs to move forward with a turbo I6 based on the 2.7. Works out to 4.0L, that would be perfect.
I’m a life long GM owner, having owned and driven two Chevelles before I had my license at 16. Now drive a 2016 GMC Denali diesel,, you know, the $70,000 truck with no heat or AC to the back seats! Anyways GM, for once, how about listening to your loyal base? I love the previous comment “take the crayons from the current designers”. What are you people thinking with this fugly Chevrolet design. You make the best trucks out there, but, your losing market share because of a few idiots at GM. BTW, check out the real sky roofs on the Ford trucks. With the Denali prices, we should have those and a better grade interior. How many sites have to mention both, again, before the GM company gets the message? BTW, out of the ballpark with the new Vette!