GM, Ford, Fiat Chrysler sales down sharply in July

The big three American automakers -- General Motors (GM), Ford and Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) -- all reported sales decrease in July, traders said on Wednesday.

GM led monthly declines for the big three as its vehicle sales fell 15.4 percent in July compared to the same month a year ago. FCA fell 10 percent, and Ford was down 7.5 percent.

The companies blamed the drops on lower fleet sales, which refers for sales to rental car agencies and other corporate buyers. But GM's retail sales accounted for most of the decline, off 14.4 percent, the company said on Wednesday.

GM's 15.4 percent decline in U.S. auto sales affected all GM brands, but the company noted that crossovers and trucks accounted for 80 percent of sales "for the company's best monthly mix ever.

Buick dropped 30.5 percent, Cadillac declined 21.7 percent, Chevrolet fell 15.3 percent and GMC dropped 7.3 percent.

The company saw total sales fall from 267,258 a year ago to 226,107 this year.

"U.S. auto sales continue to moderate from last year's record pace, but key U.S. economic fundamentals remain supportive of strong vehicle sales," said Mustafa Mohatarem, GM chief economist.

"Under the current economic conditions, we anticipate the second half of 2017 will be much stronger than the first half," he added.

Ford sales dropped 7.5 percent in July compared to the same month in 2016. The numbers dropped from 216,479 to 200,212.

The Ford brand fell 7.7 percent and Lincoln brand fell 2.5 percent. The Dearborn-based automaker reported a drop of 19 percent in car sales and 7.1 percent in trucks but a 2.2 percent increase in SUV sales.

As for FCA, most of the Auburn Hills automaker's brands were down or flat for the month: Jeep dropped 12 percent, Chrysler was down 30 percent, Dodge fell 12 percent, Ram was flat and Fiat fell 18 percent.

FCA sales for the month were at 161,477, compared to 180,389 units in July 2017.