GM Sales Nosedive - volumes nearly halved

Source: Market Watch

In the first month after the end of the "cash-for-clunkers" program, automakers on Thursday are reporting virtually across-the-board sales declines with Chrysler and General Motors seeing volumes nearly halved. General Motors sold some 156,673 vehicles in September, a slump of 45% with retail sales off 46% and fleet sales dropping 43%. Car sales were down 43% and total truck sales -- light and heavy -- plummeted 47%.

On a percentage basis, Cadillac saw the smallest dip, down 9% to 11,339 vehicles, with the largest decline in the soon-to-be-wound-down Saturn division, which posted a 84% drop in sales to 2,993 units. GM's best-selling Chevrolet division posted a 41% decline for the month to 102,538 vehicles.

"September was a tough transitional month for the industry, and a difficult year-over-year comparison for GM," said Mark LaNeve, vice president of U.S. sales, in the report. "Fortunately, the fourth quarter looks brighter and our year-over-year comparisons should look more favorable."

Record Decline in North American Trade

The Journal of Commerce reports the steepest decline on record for North American trade using surface transportation:

Trade using surface transportation between the United States, Canada and Mexico dropped 35.4 percent in May, the largest year-over-year decline on record for the North American Free Trade Agreement partners, according to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics of the U.S. Department of Transportation.

In the eighth consecutive month of falling trade, imports from Canada and Mexico to the United States in May were down 38.1 percent from May 2008 while exports from the United States declined 32 percent.

The value of North American surface trade dropped to $47.9 billion in the fifth consecutive month with a year-to-year decline of greater than 27 percent. Trucks carried 72.4 percent of the total.

Surface transportation trade between the United States and Canada totaled $29.2 billion in May, down 40.3 percent compared to May 2008. The value of imports carried by truck was 35.7 percent lower, while the value of exports carried by truck was 33.4 percent lower during this period.

U.S.–Mexico surface transportation trade totaled $18.6 billion in May, down 26 percent compared to May 2008. The value of imports carried by truck was 23.4 percent lower, while the value of exports carried by truck was 21.1 percent lower than in May a year ago.