Vehicle sales in the United States tumbled more than 35 percent in December, dragging the Detroit automakers’ full-year totals down to their lowest levels in nearly half a century.
Sales plunged 53 percent last month at Chrysler, which along with General Motors received a $4 billion from the federal government at the end of December to help them remain solvent. It sold just 89,813 vehicles last month, an average of less than one sale per day at each of its 3,300 dealers nationwide. Chrysler sales were down 30 percent for the full year.
Sales fell 37 percent at Toyota, 35 percent at Honda and 32 percent at the Ford Motor Company. G.M. and Nissan reported 31 percent declines.
For all of 2008, Ford’s sales fell 21 percent, a difference of more than 500,000 vehicles, while G.M.’s sales were down 23 percent, a drop of nearly 900,000. The totals were the lowest f0r those companies since 1961 and 1959, respectively, according to the trade publication Automotive News.
Toyota’s sales for all of 2008 were off 16 percent, while Honda’s were down 8 percent. It was the first times since 1995 that either Japanese company posted an annual sales decline.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/06/business/06auto.html?hp