US Auto Sales Falter As Import Brands Soar

4 July 2000

    Detroit - Against a backdrop of sky-high sales reports from nearly all 
European and Asian automakers, sales for the big three American carmakers 
fell in June.

    According to June sales reports released on Monday, General Motors' sales 
fell 5%, Ford was down 2.6% and DaimlerChrysler's sales dropped 10%, compared 
with figures from last year.  This is the second consecutive month in a row 
that domestic sales for GM and DC fell - Ford's May 2000 sales were slightly 
higher than the previous year.

    The declines were attributed to the cooling of the US economy, higher 
interest rates, shaky stock market, aggressive competitive pricing of import 
brands, and the recent high gasoline prices.

    However, from a historical perspective, the June sales reports aren't so 
bad, as sales still hit very respectable numbers for the month.   Domestic US 
brand buyers have purchased vehicles in record numbers in the past two years, 
and despite the sales slip, the industry still expects to sell about 17 million 
vehicles this year - which would be a new record.

    General Motors reported 472,078 vehicles sold in June, Ford had sales of 
419,932 vehicles, and DaimlerChrysler sold 215,597 vehicles.

    Ted Cunningham, DaimlerChrysler's VP of Global Sales, nonchalantly summed 
up the reports by saying, "we've moved from blistering sales to robust 
sales."


MJR