According to the Wall Street Journal, data from online car shopping platform Edmunds shows that new car prices in the U.S. have risen by about 4% since January of last year. Trump's 25% tariff on imported cars and auto parts last year drove up the cost of purchasing a vehicle. After the tariffs were introduced, prices for three- and five-year-old used cars surged, but have since fallen back. American consumers are carrying an increasingly heavy debt burden. To buy cars, they are taking out larger loans and extending loan terms to keep monthly payments manageable. In September, the average loan amount for a new car in the U.S. reached $44,729, an increase of about $3,000 from January of last year, primarily driven by rising overall car prices, lower down payments, and higher interest rates. The average loan term for new cars has now extended to 70.5 months, about a month longer than in January of last year.
