Vehicle Sales Down: Mid-August sales by the...

Vehicle Sales Down: Mid-August sales by the nation’s major auto makers fell 4.7% from the same period last year. The figures indicated no dramatic effect on sales because of rising gasoline prices spurred by tension in the Mideast. It was the first full vehicle sales period since Iraq invaded oil-rich Kuwait on Aug. 2. The Big Three auto makers--GM, Ford and Chrysler--said their cars and trucks sold at an average daily rate of 32,674 units during the Aug. 11-20 period, compared to a daily rate of 34,290 in the period last year. Car sales fell 10%; truck sales rose 5.1% based on strong sales of GM and Ford vehicles. Trucks, as a class, are less fuel efficient than cars, and a rise in the truck sales figures indicates that consumers did not shy away from gas gulpers. Sales of cars made by the Big Three tumbled 17.3%; sales of North American-made cars bearing Japanese nameplates rose 45.1%.

VEHICLE SALES

Aug. 11-20 % change 1990 year to year GM* 113,274 -6.1 Ford* 78,918 -7.8 Chrysler* 34,880 -19.5 Honda U.S. 12,323 +26.6 Mitsubishi U.S. 1,120 +23.6 Nissan U.S.* 6,825 -0.3 Toyota U.S. 10,444 +65.8 Mazda U.S. 2,660 +182.4 Subaru U.S. 643 ** Isuzu U.S.* 302 ** TOTAL 261,389 -4.7

*Includes light truck sales

**No comparison possible.

There were 8 selling days in the selling period this year and last year.