Print

Email story

Comment

Email editor

Big 3's sales up, Asians up more

DETROIT - Asian companies grabbed more of the nation's auto market in January, dampening good news for U.S. rivals who enjoyed their first monthly sales increases since discount deals ended last summer.

Asian automakers' sales jumped 11.4 percent for the month, while the traditional Big Three - General Motors Corp., Ford Motor Co. and Chrysler Group - saw their sales rise 4.6 percent, according to Autodata Corp.

The results were surprisingly strong for January, which is usually a slow month for the industry. Automakers said warm weather and heavy fleet sales pushed up the numbers. The seasonally adjusted annual sales rate was 17.6-million vehicles, indicating what sales would be for the full year if they remained at the same pace for all 12 months. Last year's annual sales totaled 17-million vehicles.

Toyota Motor Corp. said its January sales were up 14 percent, largely because of increases in the sales of the Prius hybrid and gains in the automaker's youth-oriented Scion brand. Toyota also bucked a trend toward lower truck and sport utility vehicle sales, reporting a 13 percent increase for those vehicles.

"January's bright job market outlook and the uptick in consumer confidence bode well for the industry," said Jim Press, president and chief operating officer of Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A.

General Motors reported a 5.8 percent increase for the month because of strong car sales. Truck sales were flat for the year, although GM said it saw a 23 percent rise in full-size SUV sales as its redesigned 2007 Chevrolet Tahoe hit the market.

Ford's U.S. sales rose 2.7 percent in January on the strength of its new lineup of midsize sedans.

DaimlerChrysler AG's Chrysler Group said sales of its Dodge, Chrysler and Jeep brands were up 4.9 percent.

The results were a bright spot for GM and Ford, which recently announced plans to lay off 60,000 workers to get North American operations profitable again.

[Last modified February 2, 2006, 02:15:36]