(June 1, 2016) IRVINE, Calif. — The analysts at Kelley Blue Book kbb.com today report the estimated average transaction price (ATP) for light vehicles in the United States was $33,845 in May.  New-car prices have increased by $1,139 (up 3.5 percent) from May 2015, while decreasing $116 (down 0.3 percent) from last month.

"Continuously growing demand for SUVs and trucks helped push overall average transaction prices up this month," said Tim Fleming, analyst for Kelley Blue Book. 

"The overall share of light trucks in May 2016 should be around 60 percent, up from 55 percent in May 2015.  The Detroit automakers are benefitting most from this trend, as their transaction prices are up between 4-6 percent.  Manufacturers focusing on car-heavy lineups are still seeing year-over-year strength, but at a much more modest level."

While the domestic automakers are seeing the greatest strength on their utility and truck lineups, Toyota also shows significant growth in its average transaction prices, increasing 4 percent year-over-year.  The Toyota brand rose 5.2 percent, with all models showing improvement.  The Tacoma revealed the biggest jump at 12 percent, while the refreshed RAV4 is up 6 percent.

Volkswagen Group is up 3.7 percent on a higher share of sales for its Audi and Porsche brands.  The more mainstream Volkswagen brand declined 6 percent, with nearly all models transacting lower year-over-year.  The lone bright spot in its lineup is the Golf, which rose 4 percent on a higher mix of the Golf R, the performance variant.