U.S. monthly sales numbers are due out from most U.S. and foreign automakers today, and March was another good month for car sales. Chrysler Group, which is controlled by Italy’s Fiat SpA, was first out of the blocks, reporting sales of 171,606 units, up 5% compared with March 2012 and up from 139,015 (23%) in February.
Chrysler’s March sales were its best in any month since December 2007 and marks the 36th consecutive month of year-over-year sales growth. Sales of Dodge-branded vehicles rose 15%, only half the 30% year-over-year growth posted in February. The company’s Dart compact had its best sales month since the car was introduced last June.
The Ram pickup truck brand got a sales boost of 24%, to its highest level in six years. The increase in Ram-brand sales is substantially better than the 5% increase the brand saw in February.
Auto industry website Edmunds.com forecasts total U.S. sales for 2013 at 15.5 million units, a level not seen in the United States since 2007.
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