Vehicle Sales Higher: U.S. auto makers said...

Vehicle Sales Higher: U.S. auto makers said car and truck sales in mid-January rose 3.7% compared to last year, mainly because of strong, incentive-inspired light truck buying. General Motors and Ford also reported surges in truck sales during the Jan. 11-20 period this year, but not nearly the size of Chrysler’s. Car sales by the Big Three, which make up 87.6% of the North American-made market, took a dive during mid-January, falling 5.8% during the 10-day period. The eight major U.S. auto makers reported selling cars and trucks at an average daily rate of 29,677 units during the period this year, compared to a rate of 28,619 during the same time last year.

AUTO SALES

Jan. 11-20 % 1990 change GM* 110,736 +1.1 Ford* 82,899 -6.1 Chrysler* 52,340 +14.1 Honda U.S. 7,241 +14.9 Mitsubishi U.S. 1,918 +516.7 Nissan* U.S. 3,507 -30.7 Toyota U.S. 7,405 +371.4 Mazda U.S. 1,049 +55.4 TOTAL 267,095 +3.7

*Includes light truck sales.

There were 9 selling days in the selling period this year and last year.