Finance & Insurance

Generous automaker incentives and government stimulus efforts drove new- and used-vehicle sales during the onset of the coronavirus pandemic. But as these provisions fade so may consumer demand for auto loans and leases. Auto analysts are split on whether sales in the third or fourth quarter will eclipse activity in …

Big incentives from General Motors helped GM Financial increase auto loan originations by double digits in the second quarter, even as many dealerships had to temporarily close or limit operations because of the coronavirus pandemic. GM’s captive finance arm said in a statement last week that auto loan originations rose …

Automaker captives acted quickly in the early weeks of the coronavirus pandemic to assist their customers and dealership partners. Lenders granted payment deferrals and lease extensions on a mass scale for existing customers and fielded an influx of consumer calls and messages during a time of uncertainty. Most of this …

Record adoption of digital tools bolstered sales during the challenging environment produced by the coronavirus. Despite working for years on these efforts, public groups say the finance-and-insurance component still requires improvement. Public retailers credited a portion of their second-quarter rebounds to digital deals and paperless processes. While not every public …

Finance-and-insurance profit per vehicle rose for all six publicly traded dealership groups in the second quarter as the industry absorbed the continuing impact of the coronavirus pandemic on operations. Earnings at the public dealership groups took a hit from the pandemic, though many reported better-than-expected figures for the quarter thanks …

Ford Credit posted a $ 500 million profit for the second quarter, down 38 percent from $ 800 million in the second quarter of 2019, the lender said last week, thanks in part to lower value projections for active leases. Ford Motor Co.’s finance arm, at the same time, says …

Franchised dealerships benefited from high vehicle demand amid short supply in the second quarter, with inventory levels as the leading risk for immediate sales in the back half of the year. Analysts view the economy as far more fragile, with consumer confidence — the main driver of sales— in jeopardy …

DETROIT — Ford Motor Co. formally launched the FordPass Rewards Visa card, which offers customers money back on vehicle-related purchases, among other perks. The credit card, which became available in July, allows cardholders to earn 5 percent back on certain Ford transactions, plus another 5 percent through the FordPass Rewards …

Every sector of the U.S. economy, it seems, has been touched by the coronavirus pandemic. Retail, entertainment, hospitality, health and service are among the most affected industries, given their consumer-facing nature. Yet the deadly virus has touched essential service workers who don’t often make headlines, who worked quickly in the …