Auto sales look stronger than the broader economy, but the numbers tell a stranger story: fleet buyers and wealthy shoppers are carrying the market while average consumers move carefully toward hybrids.

Today’s episode breaks down Cox Automotive’s 16.5 million-unit sales pace, hybrids reaching 18% of new-vehicle sales, Ford and Micron’s secretive memory-chip agreement, Polestar leaving the U.S. over connected-car rules, and Chinese brands gaining serious ground in the UK.

Today's Key Headlines

~Cox Automotive says the seasonally adjusted annual sales rate hit 16.5 million vehicles

~Fleet sales rise 10% overall while rental-fleet sales jump 12%

~Hybrids now make up 18% of new-vehicle sales after a 3.5-point jump

~Polestar is exiting the U.S. market due to connected-car rules

~MG sells 10,395 vehicles i ...