World vehicle production: trend

Although global vehicle production has recovered modestly in the last couple of years, it is still below 2018, the peak.

According to data from the International Organization of Motor Vehicle Manufacturers (OICA), 85 million motor vehicles were produced across the globe in 2022, a year-on-year rise of 6 percent.

Year on year, global production grew from 77.6 million units in 2010 to 96.9 million units in 2018.

But then came a sharp decline, with this indicator first falling to 92.2 million vehicles in 2019 and 77.7 million in 2020, the year of greatest impact from the Covid-19 pandemic.

Recovery in 2021 allowed for production of 80.2 million vehicles, followed by the aforementioned figure of 85 million in 2022.

According to OPENLANE, the automotive industry has experienced unprecedented market conditions, caused in part by supply chain problems, semiconductor shortages and associated delays in new vehicle production.

These factors have led to significant fluctuations in the value of used vehicles and declines in vehicle volume in the wholesale market.

OPENLANE is a leading digital marketplace for used vehicles that connects sellers and buyers in North America and Europe to facilitate fast, simple and transparent transactions.

Global production

In addition, macroeconomic factors, such as inflationary pressures, rising interest rates, volatile oil and natural gas prices and declining consumer confidence, affect the affordability and demand for new and used vehicles.

Deteriorating economic conditions pose a risk to business operations and to the stability of the automotive industry.

Analysts expect global industry production in 2023 to still be slightly below pre-pandemic 2019 levels.

Of all global vehicle production in 2022, North America had a 17.4 percent share, while Europe’s coverage was 19.1 percent and Asia and Oceania‘s was 58.8 percent.