General Motors and Ford saw sales fall again last month despite some popular new models, while Toyota reported a 7% increase over last March.
Automakers reported monthly sales figures on Monday.
GM’s sales were down nearly 15% for the year. Car sales dropped 22% as GM eased off on sales to rental fleets, while truck and sport utility vehicle sales were down 9% despite brisk sales of the redesigned Chevrolet Tahoe. GM’s sales were down 5% for the quarter.
Toyota said its March sales in the United States set a monthly record for the company despite a 22% drop for the Prius hybrid, a perennial best-seller. Jim Press, president and chief operating officer of Toyota Motor Sales USA, said Toyota was short on production for the Prius and couldn’t get enough to the US market, where dealers have only a five-day supply.
Toyota’s sales were up 7% for the month, led by a 15% increase in truck and SUV sales. Toyota’s sales also were up 7% for the quarter.
Ford said its sales fell 5% in March, largely because of waning interest in its SUVs.
Sales of Ford, Lincoln and Mercury cars were flat for the month compared to last March, but truck and SUV sales were down 7%. Sales of the Ford Explorer took a 25% dive. Ford’s sales were down 2% for the first quarter.
Still, Ford’s F-Series truck held its own, posting a 5,5% increase for the month. Ford said it was the third month in a row that sales rose for the nation’s best-selling vehicle, despite growing competition from Asian imports. Ford US sales analysis
manager George Pipas said March is traditionally a big month for truck sales at the automaker.
The Associated Press reports unadjusted figures, calculating the percentage change in the total number of vehicles sold in one month compared with the same month a year earlier. Some automakers report percentages that are adjusted for the number of sales days in a month.
GM shares dropped 80 cents, or 3,8%, to $20,47 in afternoon trading on the New York Stock Exchange. Toyota’s US shares gained $1,49, or 1,4%, to $110,39, while Ford shares slipped 21 cents, or 2,6%, to $7,75 on the NYSE. – Sapa-AP