Ford's sales dropped 42.1 percent and GM's 44.7 percent -- GM's fifth slide of more than 40 percent in the past six months. Chrysler LLC sales tumbled 39.3 percent, its smallest percentage slide since October. The biggest Japanese automakers all fell between 36 percent and 39 percent.
The results exceeded analysts' projections and were aided by what the auto information site Edmunds.com called record-high incentive spending. The seasonally adjusted annual rate of 9.3 million bested February's 27-year low of 9.1 million.
Some analysts and company officials said they saw signals that the worst of the industry's 17-month streak of declines may have passed.
"We believe we may be at or near the trough of the industry's year-to-year comparisons but do not see an uptick in industry demand before fourth-quarter 2009 at the earliest," Standard & Poor's equity analyst Efraim Levy said in a note to investors.
Ford economist Emily Kolinski Morris said the company has seen "some encouraging signs" that the pace of economic decline could be moderating. For instance, consumer confidence levels in March stayed flat with the record low reached in February, according to the monthly index conducted since 1967 by the Conference Board, a market information group.
"It's too early to say the market is bottoming out," Kolinski Morris said during a conference call. "Uncertainty remains for the next few months, and the risk of industry restructuring is another wild-card factor."
Ford said it built 349,000 vehicles in the first quarter, 26,000 fewer than estimated in its latest forecast.
Late yesterday, American Honda Motor Co. said it would shut factories for 13 days in May, reducing North American production by 62,000 vehicles.
Honda's March decline was 36.3 percent; Nissan North America's, 37.7 percent; and Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A.'s, 39 percent.
Another low
Analysts continue to point to lagging consumer confidence as the main culprit for slumping sales, followed closely by still-tight credit and worries about the viability of GM and Chrysler. Those companies are surviving on $17.4 billion in federal loans.
On Monday, President Barack Obama denied their requests for as much as $21.6 billion in additional aid and raised the specter of bankruptcy if they don't complete satisfactory restructuring plans this spring.
GM and Ford both announced programs yesterday to cover car payments for buyers who lose their jobs. The U.S. unemployment rate stands at 8.1 percent, a quarter-century high, as the recession extends into a 17th month, making it the longest since the Great Depression.
The first automaker to adopt a job-loss protection program, Hyundai, is one of just four brands to record an increase in U.S. sales this year. One of those brands, Daimler AG's Smart, posted March's only gain -- 0.7 percent. Hyundai's sales declined 4.8 percent in March, while Kia was down 0.6 percent and Subaru fell 2.6 percent.
BMW of North America's 22.9 percent decline was better than President Jim O'Donnell expected.
But he added: "No celebrating."
"In March, we saw a mixed cocktail of good, bad and ugly signals in the market, and for us, I'm happy to say we're starting to see a bit more of the good," he said in a statement. "Further loosening of the credit reins is needed to see even more buying action."
Responding to such credit concerns today was GMAC Financial Services, GM's captive lender. The company will resume subprime lending and pump $5 billion more into consumer auto loans over the next 60 days.
And Chrysler said it will extend its Employee Pricing Plus Plus program through the end of April. The promotion offers buyers of Dodge, Jeep and Chrysler vehicles the same price paid by Chrysler employees. It also includes rebates of as much as $6,000 and interest-free financing for 48 months.
Chrysler led all automakers last month by spending $4,927 per vehicle in incentives, Edmunds said. The industry averaged $3,169 per unit.
Last year, 13.2 million light vehicles were sold in the United States. Through 2008, the average this decade was 16.4 million annually.
+ March 2009 Auto Sales: U.S. Sales Fall 36.8%
+ March 2009 Auto Sales: Japan Plunge 32%, Hit 38-Year-Low
+ March 2009 Auto Sales: Hyundai Motor India Fall By 15.8%
+ Feb.2009 Auto Sales: GM,Ford Lead U.S. Sales Plunged 41.3%
+ Feb.2009 Auto Sales: Japan Sales Plunged 32.4%
+ Feb.2009 Auto Sales: Predictd Hovering at 27-Year Lows
+ Feb.2009 Auto Sales: Volvo North America Rises 15%
+ Feb.2009 Auto Sales: Kia America Rise 0.4% of 2008
+ Feb.2009 Auto Sales: GM Plunge 53%
+ Feb.2009 Auto Sales: Ford Plunge 48%
