FCA Canada posts further sales decline in October

Brand sales growth: Fiat -24% to 2,622; Chrysler -45% to 14,181; Jeep -7% to 68,826; Dodge -16% to 41,514; Ram +12% to 49,443; Alfa Romeo 23.

GM reported that it’s getting strong prices for its vehicles.

Hyundai and Subaru both reported 4-percent sales increases from last October. Fiat Chrysler’s sales were down 10 percent.

Among the top four sellers: General Motors Co. said its sales overall slipped 1.7% compared with the same time a year ago, a reflection of its moves to pare less profitable sales to fleet buyers like vehicle rental customers.

GM on Tuesday estimated that industry sales hit an annualized rate of 18 million units in October and 17.4 million for the first 10 months of the year. Despite the sales of the Grand Cherokee and Patriot increasing, the decline in demand for the Cherokee, Compass, Renegade and Wrangler couldn’t make up for the loss.

The new Ram 1500 will arrive in early 2018 and throughout that calendar year, nearly 325,000 units are expected to be produced at the firm’s Sterling Heights Assembly facility.

The nation’s largest auto suppliers disclosed single-digit percentage declines from a year ago, fueled by a recent trend of weaker demand for sedans, coupes and other passenger vehicles.

The rest of its lineup didn’t do any better; the sales of the 300 saw a 29 percent decrease. Honda-brand truck models, including the HR-V, CR-V, and Pilot SUVs, the Ridgeline pickup, and the Odyssey minivan, were up 1.1% as a group with the small HR-V up 46.5%, but sales of Honda’s cars fell 4.9% on a 15% drop in Accord sales.

“Planned reductions by FCA and Ford indicate a more disciplined approach to sales strategies going forward that will support a healthy automotive market”, Eric Lyman, TrueCar’s chief industry analyst, said in a statement.

The pace of US sales growth continues to flatten, as automakers have been reporting slackening sales in the final months of 2016.

Nissan Motor Co.’s sales declined 2.2%, as an 11% rise in truck sales tempered a 13% decline in auto sales. There were able to sell 5,000 more trucks and SUVs than cars.

If the slipping USA market is putting pressure on Jeep sales, that will be bad news for FCA’s still-thin bottom line.

Fiat Chrysler’s Ram truck division will reportedly continue production of its current light-duty pickup well into 2019. Ford Motor Co.’s sales report has been delayed because of a fire at the company’s headquarters Monday. It has yet to release its sales for October.

The Detroit-based automaker said Buick sales rose 7.4 percent, Cadillac sales fell 9.4 percent, Chevrolet sales fell 0.8 percent and GMC sales slid 6.2 percent. Toyota’s decline far exceeded the 4.7 percent drop predicted.

Ram was FCA’s only bright spot in October, with sales climbing 12 percent. Nissan slipped 2.2 percent instead of the estimated 1.5 percent. But vehicle sales dropped. Ram Truck brand sales are up 11 percent calendar year to date compared with the same 10 months in 2015. The Weekly Volatility is 3.38% percent and the Monthly Volatility is 2.08% percent.