DETROIT: US auto sales fell about 3.5 percent in August, and some major automakers said a long-expected sales decline has begun or, at best, that sales have hit a plateau, which may spark a shift to juicer customer incentives and slowed production.
The top three sellers, General Motors Co, Ford Motor Co. and Toyota Motor Corp. on Thursday reported declines of at least 5 percent.
Of the seven top manufacturers by sales, only Fiat Chrysler Automobiles reported a gain versus s year ago, when sales were restated to about 11,000 fewer than originally reported.
With only a few automakers left to report, sales were tacking near 17.0 million to 17.1 million vehicles on a seasonally adjusted annualized rate, versus a surprisingly strong 17.88 million vehicles in July.
Ford Chief Economist Bryan Bezold said sales have hit a plateau after steadily rising following the 2008-2009 recession. The auto industry outperformed the overall US economy in those years largely due to pent-up demand that has now played out, he said.
August US auto sales down 3.5%
