Despite the dour economy, auto sales climbed 9.9 percent in September with all three of the Detroit auto makers seeing gains.
The seasonally adjusted sales rate for vehicles rose to 13.1 million, marking the first time since April the rate exceeded 13 million.
Chrysler was the U.S. leader with a 27 percent increase in sales over the same month last year.
Even sales of larger vehicles were up last month, (which is always good news for makers of back seat TV or rear view cameras). Sales of light trucks, SUVs and minivans rose 16.1 percent, as gas prices fell. This compares to passenger car sales which were up 3.4 percent.
“There is no double-dip downturn going on around here,” said Reid Bigland, Chrysler’s head of U.S. sales, reported The New York Times.
Source: The New York Times (requires subscription)
