GM, Ford and Chrysler sales all lag estimates

General Motors Co. and Ford Motor Co. reported U.S. sales in July that trailed analysts’ estimates as consumers concerned about the economy limited large purchases. Toyota Motor Corp. and Nissan Motor Co. topped expectations.

GM’s sales rose 1.5 percent, including an adjustment for the number of selling days in July. On that basis, the largest U.S. automaker was expected to report a 10 percent increase, the average estimate of five analysts surveyed by Bloomberg. Ford’s adjusted sales fell 0.7 percent, trailing analysts’ estimates for a 10 percent gain. Its total sales climbed 3.1 percent.

Potential customers are staying away from showrooms amid signs the pace of the economic recovery is slowing. A jobless rate that remains at a 27-year high helped push the New York- based Conference Board’s measure of consumer sentiment to the lowest level in five months last week.

“We are certainly not seeing any good news from the jobs market and that’s scaring people,” Rebecca Lindland, an analyst with IHS Automotive in Lexington, Massachusetts, said today in a telephone interview.

Industrywide sales rose to an 11.99 million vehicle annual rate, according to an updated preliminary estimate by Autodata Corp. of Woodcliff Lake, New Jersey. Deliveries were expected to reach 11.9 million vehicles, the average estimate of eight analysts. Autodata said it will recalculate the annual pace after the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis releases updated seasonal adjustments.

GM Deliveries

GM’s deliveries climbed to 199,692 from 189,443 a year earlier, the Detroit-based company said today in a statement. Total sales of Chevrolet vehicles gained 12 percent from a year earlier to 139,916 vehicles and GMC deliveries increased 27 percent to 27,798, the company said. Cadillac and Buick more than doubled.

The results show GM’s turnaround efforts may be slowing after last year’s bankruptcy. Sales of GM’s Hummer, Pontiac, Saab and Saturn brands, which were closed or sold, fell to 260 vehicles from 29,365 in July of last year.

Industrywide deliveries dropped to an 11.1 million pace in June, feeding concerns that the auto recovery was stalling. Discounts and incentives, while higher than last year, were reduced 1.3 percent from June to an average of $2,831 per vehicle, according to TrueCar.com in Santa Monica, California.

Full story