GM and Ford, Toyota and Nissan report sales gains for March

DETROIT April 1, 2004; John Porretto writing for the AP reported that General Motors Corp. and Ford Motor Co. posted U.S. sales increases in March, as did two of Japan's biggest car manufacturers, but the uptick in business wasn't enough to keep GM and Ford from raising consumer incentives to lure more customers.

Industrywide, U.S. sales rose 3.8 percent in March versus a year ago, a jump largely anticipated because of depressed results last March when many people delayed major purchases and watched the war with Iraq on television.

After a slow start to the year, automakers should see business continue to rise for the next couple of months as Americans spend tax refunds and take advantage of ever-increasing consumer incentives, analysts say.

"More volume, of course, is good for all industry participants," Merrill Lynch analyst John Casesa said in a research note Thursday. "But the gains for automakers will be mitigated by more margin pressure resulting from higher incentives."

The seasonally adjusted annual sales rate for March was 16.7 million units, compared with 16.4 million in February and 16.2 million in March 2003. The sales rate indicates what sales for the full year would be if they remained at the same pace for all 12 months. Full-year sales for 2003 were 16.7 million.

GM, the world's largest automaker, said Thursday overall sales rose 6.3 percent last month, led in part by strong mid-size car sales and a 16 percent rise in business at Cadillac.

GM also announced it was increasing incentives on most 2004 trucks through June 1. The new offer includes an extra $1,000 in cash and interest-free financing for five years.

Japan's No. 1 carmaker, Toyota Motor Corp., ended its best-ever first quarter in the United States with its best-ever March, as sales rose 5.5 percent. Toyota sold 464,721 vehicles in the United States in the first three months of the year -- about 52,000 fewer than DaimlerChrysler AG's Chrysler Group, the No. 3 U.S. manufacturer.

Toyota has done business in the United States for 47 years.

"Despite skyrocketing fuel prices, industry sales, especially in the light truck segment, remain strong," said Jim Press, executive vice president of Toyota's U.S. division.

Pickup trucks again drove sales at Ford, as its overall business rose 2.2 percent last month. Pickups also scored big for Chrysler, as the Dodge Ram had an all-time sales record for March.

Companywide, Chrysler's business was off 2 percent in March versus the year-ago period, but the automaker still managed to notch its second consecutive quarter of positive sales growth.

At the same time, Nissan Motor Co.'s North American division had its best sales month ever, reporting business up 30.3 percent from last year. Nissan has launched a new full-size pickup and sport utility vehicle in recent months.

Through March, Nissan's U.S. sales, including its luxury Infiniti division, were up 33.2 percent compared with the first three months of 2003.

March marked Ford's first positive sales month since November. The automaker said truck sales, led by its industry-leading F-Series models, rose 8.7 percent, while sales of Ford, Lincoln and Mercury brand cars fell by roughly the same percentage.

Last month also marked the seventh consecutive month that F-Series trucks achieved a double-digit sales increase -- a streak that coincides with the introduction of the new F-150 last year.

"March was a solid month, and tax refunds should help keep spring sales brisk," said Jim O'Connor, Ford's group vice president for North American marketing, sales and service.

Like GM, Ford increased its consumer-incentive offerings Thursday. Ford added $500 in cash on some models of its F-150 pickup, bring the total rebate to $1,500. It also increased cash-back offers on the Focus car, Escape sport utility vehicle and Freestar minivan.

At GM, five brands -- Cadillac, Chevrolet, GMC, Pontiac and Buick -- reported double-digit sales increases in March versus a year ago. Truck sales for the first quarter were up 7.5 percent.

"We expect further growth (in truck business) this year with the addition of new products like the Chevrolet Colorado and Equinox, Cadillac SRX and GMC Envoy XUV and Canyon," said John Smith, GM's group vice president for sales, service and marketing in North America.

In trading on the New York Stock Exchange, GM shares fell 1 cent to close at $47.09, Ford shares fell 15 cents to $13.42 and DaimlerChrysler's U.S. shares were up 67 cents to close at $42.41.