According to S&P Global Mobility new registration data, the battery electric vehicle (BEV) share of sales has been above 8% in the U.S. every month since June. September’s BEV share was estimated to reach above 9%, and October BEV sales are expected to remain above that level. These numbers are assisted by the sustained rollouts of vehicles such as the Chevrolet Equinox EV and Honda Prologue, and to be followed by new BEVs such as the Polestar 3, Jeep Wagoneer S, and Volkswagen ID, S&P said.

On a volume estimate of 1.315 million units, S&P Global Mobility expects U.S. light vehicle sales in October to achieve year-over-year growth of 11%. While the volume improvement can be attributed to two additional selling days in the month compared to last year, this result would translate to a seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR) of 15.9 million units, one of the better results for the SAAR metric this year, S&P said.

“As we begin the final quarter of the calendar year, there’s potential that automakers will look to provide some additional support for consumers,” Chris Hopson, principal analyst at S&P Global Mobility, said. “This would be warmly received by new vehicle shoppers who continue to be pressured by high interest rates and slow-to-recede vehicle prices, which are translating to high monthly payments.”

Support from advancing inventories also suggests that auto sales could develop further to close out the year, S&P said.

According to S&P Global Mobility Retail Advertised Inventory data, retail advertised inventory in the U.S. soared to just over 3 million units in September.

“This is a significant 4.7% increase from the previous month and breaking the three-million mark for the first time in our dataset,” Matt Trommer, associate director at S&P Global Mobility, said. “This surge aligns with a broader trend we’ve observed over the past two years, where inventory levels consistently rise in the fall.”