New York: General Motors reported higher third-quarter US auto sales and lower car inventories as it contends with an auto worker strike now in its third week.
The biggest US automaker sold 738,638 autos in the third quarter, up 6.3 per cent from the year-ago period, but about 10,000 below a projection from Edmunds.com. Strong categories included truck models under the Chevrolet and GMC brands.
GM’s car inventory stood at 759,633, down almost 50,000 since the second quarter, the company said in a brief news release that included none of the usual commentary from executives.
Nearly 50,000 US auto workers have been on strike since September 16 as the biggest US auto company and the UAW spar over wages, health benefits, temporary workers and job security. A report on Tuesday from JPMorgan Chase estimated that the strike had cost GM about $1 billion so far.
Among other companies, Ford reported a 4.9 per cent drop in US sales compared with the year-ago period to 580,251, with higher truck sales helping offset a nearly 30 per cent drop in sedans and somewhat lower sales of sport utility vehicles. — AFP
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