(Reuters) - Recreational vehicle shipments in 2016 are expected to reach their highest level in nearly four decades, according to data from an industry association, fueled by job growth and rising wages.
RV shipments in the United States are expected to total 419,500 in 2016, a 12.1 percent jump from a year earlier, and 438,100 in 2017, the Recreation Vehicle Industry Association said.
The U.S economy has regained momentum after stumbling in late 2015 and early 2016 with strength in the labor market bolstering domestic demand.
The economy is on track to grow at a 3.6 percent annualized pace in the fourth quarter after data showed domestic housing starts hit a nine-year high in October.
The RV industry saw shipments plunge in 2008 and 2009, as rising borrowing costs weighed on consumer confidence and crimped demand for a broad range of discretionary purchases.
President Barack Obama had then campaigned in the city of Elkhart, Indiana, a center for recreational vehicle manufacturing, promising he would do his best to revive the economy.