• Als Spam markieren
• Beitrag melden

• 
  Diese Gruppe Alles

• Archiv
• RSS-Feeds

• Kontakt
• Hilfe
• Impressum
• Datenschutz

Re: BUSH ECONOMY Still In the TOILET! His BOOKEND Legacy = 9/11 ... and ... RECESSION!

"Most Automakers Report Double-Digit Sales Drops"

By Tom Krisher
Associated Press
Thursday, September 4, 2008; D03


DETROIT, Sept. 3 -- Ford Motor said Wednesday that its U.S. sales fell
26 percent in August as the struggling automaker's results, even worse
than July's dismal figures, showed that the U.S. auto sales slump may
not have bottomed out.

Toyota's sales dropped 9.4 percent from August 2007, a further
indication that the woes in the U.S. auto market are continuing.
However, Nissan, the only major automaker to show a sales gain in
July, reported another improvement, with a 13.6 percent increase in
August sales.

Meanwhile, General Motors reported a 20.4 percent drop in sales from a
year ago but a 31 percent improvement over its July totals, thanks
mainly to offering all buyers employee pricing on many models.

Ford sold 155,172 light vehicles last month, down 3.6 percent from
160,990 in July, which was the industry's worst month for U.S. sales
in 16 years.

The automaker said its Ford, Lincoln and Mercury car sales dropped
nearly 9 percent, while truck sales were off more than 32 percent last
month.

The company doesn't expect a sales rebound in the second half of the
year. It said it plans to cut 50,000 more vehicles from its production
plan in the second half, reducing its output to 890,000.

There were some bright spots for Ford. Sales of its Focus small car
were up 23 percent in August, while Escape small sport-utility vehicle
sales rose 17 percent compared with the same month a year ago.

Toyota said its car sales were down 3.4 percent from August 2007, and
trucks were down 17.6 percent. Sales of the tiny Yaris were up more
than 20 percent for the month, while sales of the Camry midsize sedan
grew 3.3 percent, the company said.

GM sold 307,285 vehicles in August, down from 385,529 in the same
month last year. Sales of light trucks tumbled 24.1 percent, while car
sales fell 13.9 percent.

GM officials said the employee-pricing offer during the last two weeks
of the month brought customers into dealerships. On Wednesday, GM
extended the offer until Sept. 30.

Employee discounts generally are 10 percent below the invoice price
but vary by model.

Nissan said its car sales fell 0.8 percent, but its truck sales
climbed 34.8 percent on strong sales of its Frontier, Xterra and Quest
models and the Infiniti EX and FX crossovers.

Analysts have predicted a seasonally adjusted annual sales rate for
August of just over 13 million, far below the August 2007 rate of 16.2
million. They would have reduced August predictions even further had
it not been for GM's steep discounts.

U.S. sales in July fell to an annual rate of 12.5 million vehicles.
Most major automakers posted double-digit declines, with Nissan the
only one to report an increase.

Automakers have seen their sales tumble this year as weak consumer
confidence, house value declines and high gas prices have steered many
buyers away from dealer lots and pushed the ones who remain toward
smaller, more fuel-efficient vehicles.

At the same time, the tightening of credit markets and higher leasing
costs have made it harder for many Americans to get financing.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/09/03/AR2008090303547.html?nav=h
cmoduletmv

Antworten