See Lael Brainard (2021), “Patience and Progress as the Economy Reopens and Recovers,” speech delivered at “The Road to Recovery and What’s Next,” a virtual conference sponsored by the Society for Advancing Business Editing and Writing (via webcast), May 11, https://www.federalreserve.gov/newsevents/speech/brainard20210511a.htm. 4  The used vehicles category contributed just over 0.1 percentage point to the April core PCE reading.
On the demand side, stimulus payments and low borrowing rates have given households additional capability to purchase vehicles, and the pandemic appears to have increased the relative value of private transportation.