U.S. industrywide auto sales declined about 35 percent in the first half of May compared to a year ago, and any start of a recovery is unlikely until late summer, an influential industry tracking service said on Thursday.
J.D. Power & Associates said it has also revised down its outlook for 2009 U.S. auto sales to 10 million units, down 400,000 units from its previous forecast.
"While there are some signs of stability in the automotive market, current sales rates indicate that achieving recovery will not be a quick proposition," said Gary Dilts, senior vice president of global automotive operations at J.D. Power.
New vehicle sales are expected to come in at 876,000 units in May, which represent a seasonally adjusted annualized rate of 9.3 million units, the forecasting firm said.
That would compare to 14.3 million units a year earlier and would mark the lowest sales level in nearly three decades.
The firm said "a high level of consumer uncertainty" has led to a flattening of retail sales and a projected delay in market recovery of two to three months beyond the spring selling season.
U.S. auto sales fell nearly 40 percent in the first four months of 2009 compared with the same period last year, compounding woes surrounding embattled U.S. automakers General Motors Corp (GM.N) and Chrysler.
Chrysler filed for bankruptcy on April 30, and experts have said it will be almost impossible for GM to avoid bankruptcy by the end of May.
