Hyperdrive

The Next American Car Recession Has Already Started

The collapse of the sedan market has left Detroit automakers with too many plants.

Boom or Doom for U.S. Automakers in 2019?

These should be boom times for Detroit. Unemployment is at a half-century low, gasoline is cheap and auto sales in the U.S. were near record levels last year. Yet American automakers are closing factories, cutting shifts and laying off thousands of workers. The industry is behaving like a recession has arrived.

In one segment of the market, it has.