GM Bucks Trend with 5% August Sales Gain

General Motors said Tuesday U.S. sales jumped over 5% in August, amid a 6.1% gain in sales of pickup trucks and sport utility vehicles. GM sold 388,168 vehicles last month, up from 368,776 a year-ago. Analysts had forecasted the automaker's sales would fall 4%. Car sales fell 7.8% while sales of light trucks rose 16.5%. GM dropped its Q3 North America production forecast by 2%; it now forecasts 1.05 million vehicles. GM pegged its Q4 production target at 1 million vehicles, down 10% percent from last year. "Bucking the trend in the industry, we were able to post healthy sales results in August." Ford said Tuesday its U.S. sales fell 14% (full story), while Japanese automaker Toyota announced its August sales dropped an unexpected 2.8% (full story). GM shares are up 3.7% to $31.90 at 3:29 p.m.

Sources: Press release, Reuters, MarketWatch
Commentary: Ford, General Motors Get Estimate Boost From KeyBanc Analyst • Toyota Zeros In on GM Car Sales Record • GM Cuts Production on Pickups, SUVs
Stocks/ETFs to watch: GM. Competitors: F, TM
Earnings call transcript: General Motors Q2 2007

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