New U.S. auto sales are expected to rise 15% in January from a
year earlier but will fall sharply from December, according to
Edmunds.com.
The online automotive-information provider estimated 1.05
million new vehicles will be sold in January, a 23% drop from last
month.
The forecast translates into a seasonally adjusted annualized
rate of 15.3 million light vehicles.
"January's numbers show that vehicle sales stayed strong even
after the holiday ads faded away and the replacement sales
following Hurricane Sandy started to dry up," senior analyst
Jessica Caldwell said.
Edmunds said it expects Toyota Motor Corp. (TM, 7203.TO) and
Honda Motor Co. (HMC, 7267.TO) to record sales increases of 18% and
17%, respectively, from January 2012. Meanwhile, it predicted
Nissan Motor Co. (NSANY, 7201.TO) will post a 3.7% sales
increase.
Among U.S. auto makers, Edmunds said it expects General Motors
Co.'s (GM) sales to rise 16% and estimated Ford Motor Co.'s (F)
sales growth at 21%. Chrysler Group LLC's sales are expected to
climb 20%.
There were 25 selling days this month and 24 selling days a year
ago.
Write to Melodie Warner at melodie.warner@dowjones.com
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