Post by TonyV on Dec 18, 2009 3:04:28 GMT -5
Early December sales buoy Ford
BY BRENT SNAVELY
FREE PRESS BUSINESS WRITER
Sales of cars and trucks during the first two weeks of sales in December are encouraging, Ford Motor Co.’s group vice president of global marketing said today.
“We have seen some signs of life in early December,” Jim Farley said. “We’ve seen stabilization and some really encouraging signs in the first few weeks – not dramatic change, but more activity in the showrooms.”
Still, Farley warned that December is one of the more unpredictable months for car and truck sales since most of the volume occurs during the last week of the month.
Farley said he now expects total industry sales of about 10.5 million in the United States for both light and heavy duty vehicles. That would more than a 20% decline from 2008.
Farley declined to speculate what industry sales might look like next year as the nation tries to recover from its worst recession since the 1930s. Farley said he has read forecasts ranging from 10 million vehicles to 12.5 million vehicles.
“As far as 2010? Nobody knows what’s happening in 2010, nobody knows,” Farley said.
Through November, U.S. auto sales are down 23.9%, with 9.4 million new cars and trucks sold.
Contact BRENT SNAVELY : 313-222-6512 or bsnavely@freepress.com
BY BRENT SNAVELY
FREE PRESS BUSINESS WRITER
Sales of cars and trucks during the first two weeks of sales in December are encouraging, Ford Motor Co.’s group vice president of global marketing said today.
“We have seen some signs of life in early December,” Jim Farley said. “We’ve seen stabilization and some really encouraging signs in the first few weeks – not dramatic change, but more activity in the showrooms.”
Still, Farley warned that December is one of the more unpredictable months for car and truck sales since most of the volume occurs during the last week of the month.
Farley said he now expects total industry sales of about 10.5 million in the United States for both light and heavy duty vehicles. That would more than a 20% decline from 2008.
Farley declined to speculate what industry sales might look like next year as the nation tries to recover from its worst recession since the 1930s. Farley said he has read forecasts ranging from 10 million vehicles to 12.5 million vehicles.
“As far as 2010? Nobody knows what’s happening in 2010, nobody knows,” Farley said.
Through November, U.S. auto sales are down 23.9%, with 9.4 million new cars and trucks sold.
Contact BRENT SNAVELY : 313-222-6512 or bsnavely@freepress.com