GM Expects North American Output to Drop in Fourth Quarter

09/12/96

Reuters has reported that General Motors Corporation expects its fourth quarter North American production to fall 3.8 percent below what it was a year ago. The corporation said that fourth quarter production will be partially curtailed by several new vehicle launches this fall, including several new sedans and three new minivans.

GM has scheduled 1.32 million cars and trucks for production in the United States, Canada and Mexico between October and December. Last year the company built 1.372 million vehicles it built during the same period.

GM boosted last month's estimates of its third quarter production by 5,000 units. The automaker now plans to build 1.245 million cars and trucks in North America during the third quarter, 5.7 percent up from the 1.178 million vehicles it built between July and September, 1995.

GM said its full calendar year production in North American should hit 5.332 million units, down 5.5 percent from 1995's 5.645 million. GM's first quarter production was curtailed when a 17-day strike at two Dayton, Ohio, brake plants shut-off parts supplies to many of the company's assembly plants. Before the strike ended, GM suspended production at nearly all of its North American assembly plants.

GM said its North American production for August rang in at 484,000 vehicles, including 287,000 passenger cars and 197,000 trucks.

Paul Dever -- The Auto Channel