As discussed in an earlier post, new car purchases can be a useful, timely economic indicator. Figure 1 below shows the statewide number of new car registrations from January 2018 through June 2026. This is a good proxy for the number of cars purchased by California residents.
After Half-Year Slump, Strong Growth in May and June. Seasonally adjusted new car registrations dropped 8 percent from September 2025 to December 2025, then declined an additional 2 percent from December to April. Thanks to 10 percent growth from April to June, however, registrations have now fully recovered from the slump.
Californians Still Buying Fewer Cars Than Before the Pandemic. Statewide new car registrations declined steadily for several years leading up to the COVID-19 pandemic. Like many other measures of economic activity, registrations plummeted in March and April 2020. Registrations rebounded substantially in the subsequent months but generally have remained below pre-pandemic levels. For example, registrations in June 2026 were 8 percent lower than in June 2019.