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Ford post lower U.S. sales; Toyota gains</div>
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DaimlerChrysler, Nissan both hand in pullbacks in May sales</div>
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<div class="StoryHeadlineDetails" id="StoryContent_TopPageNavigation_AuthorInformati on">By
Shawn Langlois, MarketWatch</div>
<div class="StoryHeadlineDetails" id="StoryContent_TopPageNavigation_LastUpdated">La st Update: 1:43 PM ET Jun 1, 2006</div>
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SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Ford Motor Co. on Thursday posted a 1.9% decline in U.S. sales for May, combining with a drop at DaimlerChrysler to kick off what looks to be a rough month for domestic automakers as fuel prices weighed on consumers.</div>
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<div class="p">As expected, Toyota Motorbucked the trend with a 17% jump in unit sales. </div>
<div class="p">Still, Ford's results were better than what analyst had been forecasting as a record month for Fusion sedan sales fueled a 6.4% increase on the car side. Overall, sales declined 1.9% in May to 278,546 vehicles. </div>
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<div class="p">Truck sales fell 6.6% with consumers shying away from fuel-thirsty SUVs like the Explorer and Expedition. Sales of the best-selling Ford F-Series declined 6% to 70,175 vehicles. There was one more selling day in May 2006 than in the year-ago month. </div>
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<div class="p">'We've seen an industry-wide decline in traditional sport utility vehicles, and higher gas prices accelerated this decline,' said Al Giombetti, president of Ford and Lincoln Mercury sales. Ford's Escape, Freestyle and Mercury Mariner crossovers picked up some of the slack, as did a 132% jump in Escape and Mariner hybrid sales to 2,862 vehicles </div>
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<div class="p">Ford also said it plans to produce 710,000 vehicles in the third quarter, down from 728,000 cars and trucks in the year-ago quarter. </div>
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<div class="p">Last month, Ford and GM, which will report monthly results later Thursday, showed glimmers of hope for their trucks and passenger cars, respectively, but still lost ground to Toyota and other foreign rivals. </div>
<div class="p">The seasonally adjusted annual rate of sales, known as SAAR, came in at 16.74 million in April and 16.68 million last May, according to Autodata.</div>
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<div class="p">Analysts polled by Thomson First Call are looking for the SAAR to fall back to 16.4 million vehicles this month. Early results show that the industry's number is on track to meet or exceed that target, according to Ford sales analyst George Pipas. </div>
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<div class="h3">Daimler dips<span class="LqQtGroup"> [/quote]said it sold 212,882 cars and trucks, down 8.4% from 232,386 a year ago. On the Chrysler side, sales fell 11% to 191,261 vehicles, but the company's looking to its 'most aggressive product launch' ever in 2006 to help spur sales. </div>
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<div class="p">Mercedes-Benz, on the back of strong demand for its GL-Class full-sized SUV, posted a 21% increase to 21,621 vehicles. </div>
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<div class="p">Separately, Volkswagen AG's Jetta model helped drive sales 36% higher to 22,100 vehicles. Jetta sedan sales rose 49% to 11,026, while Passat sedan sales more than doubled to 3,727 vehicles. Wolfsburg, Germany-based Volkswagen's Touareg SUV sales dropped 59% to 535 vehicles during the month. </div>
<div class="p">Audi reported its sales rose 10.3% to 7,120 vehicles with the A4 model accounting for 3,582 units -- a 34.1% increase over last year. Audi, which is owned by Volkswagen, sold 1,597 of its larger A6 model, a 21.6% rise. </div>
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<div class="p">Elsewhere, Porsche's May sales dipped by 19 vehicles from last year's monthly tally to 3,272 sports cars and SUVs. Cayenne SUV sales declined while the 911, Boxster and the new Cayman models increased from a year ago. The Stuttgart, Germany-based automaker said its 2006 U.S. sales are on pace to be its strongest yet. </div>
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Toyota surges, Nissan backs down</div>
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<div class="p">Toyota posted a 17% surge in May U.S. sales to a best-ever 235,708 cars and trucks. Consumers flocked to the car side, which jumped 24.6% to 144,875 vehicles. But that didn't stop Toyota truck sales from gaining 6.6% to 90,833 vehicles. Toyota's luxury Lexus division saw sales jump 13.4% to 29,999 vehicles. </div>
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<div class="p">Nissan North Americareported its total sales fell 7.3% from last year to 86,667 vehicles. Sales of the luxury Infiniti line fell 11.6% from last year to 9,786 units while Nissan-brand sales dipped 6.7% to 76,881 units. The company's full-size Armada SUV and Titan pickup truck both posted weaker results this May. </div>
<div class="h3">Incentive spending rises Automakers spent $2,416 per vehicle in incentives last month, up 5% from April but down from a year ago, according to Edmunds.com. </div>
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<div class="p">General Motors, which just last week announced a promotion to cap gas prices at $1.99, spent $273 more than it did in May, bringing its per-vehicle total to $2,774. Chrysler's spending rose $100 to $3,642 while Ford's fell $94 to $3,200. </div>
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<div class="p">The Japanese spent $1,325 per vehicle, an increase of $146 from last month, and the Europeans raised incentives $182 to a record $3,037 per vehicle. </div>
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<div class="p">Relative to price, Mercury and Jeep spent the most -- 17.2% and 16.4% of sticker price, respectively, while Scion and Porsche spent the least. </div>
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<div class="p">Large SUVs, still feeling the sting of lofty gas prices, carried the most cash on the hood with $4,783 per vehicle. Sports cars were the stingiest in terms of deals with just $546 per car.
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Shawn Langlois is a reporter for MarketWatch, and the editor of its community message boards.[/quote]</div>
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Edited by - mpollard on 06/01/2006 11:48:28 AM
