Chrysler sales rose 34% in March on record month for Fiat

Chrysler Group LLC, the automaker controlled by Fiat SpA, said its U.S. sales increased 34 percent in March as higher gasoline prices pushed deliveries of the Fiat 500 subcompact to a monthly record.

Chrysler sales last month climbed to 163,381 cars and light trucks from 121,730 a year earlier, the Auburn Hills, Michigan- based company said today in a statement. The average estimate of 10 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg was for a 31 percent gain. Ford Motor Co. sales rose 5 percent in March, an executive said on CNBC, without being more specific.

Light-vehicle sales in March may have run at a 14.5 million seasonally adjusted annual rate, the average estimate of 16 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg. Job gains and buyers who put off car purchases during the recession are driving the fastest three-month auto-sales pace in four years, even as the average U.S. unleaded gasoline price rose 20 percent since the end of 2011.

“As unemployment comes down and consumer confidence goes up, we see the consumer going out and buying that new vehicle that they put off buying for a number of years,” Joseph Spak, an analyst for RBC Capital Markets in New York, said in an interview yesterday on Bloomberg Television’s “Street Smart.”

Ford’s sales were its best for the month of March in five years, Mark Fields, the company’s president of the Americas, said on CNBC. The average estimate of 10 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg was for Ford deliveries to increase 5.5 percent.

Jobs, Confidence

The 1.2 million jobs created the past six months, the best six-month job growth stretch since 2006, has sent unemployment to a three-year low, according to Labor Department figures. The Conference Board’s consumer confidence index held near the highest level in a year in March, the New York-based private research group said on March 27.

The Fiat 500, which achieved record monthly sales of 3,712, is one of 11 small cars automakers have introduced since 2007, according to researcher LMC Automotive. Greater selection of more fuel-efficient models is boosting sales as gasoline prices rise.

Gains extended beyond the small car. Chrysler said deliveries of its 200 and 300 sedans more than doubled from a year earlier. Sales of the Jeep Liberty, Wrangler and Grand Cherokee sport-utility vehicles each climbed by at least 43 percent, and Ram pickup deliveries increased 23 percent to 26,960.

Better Selection

“The number of choices and types of vehicles has changed significantly and the product has gotten much better,” Jeff Schuster, LMC’s senior vice president of forecasting in Troy, Michigan, said in a phone interview before sales results were released. “Buyers have more choices, and they see the benefit of going into more fuel-efficient vehicles.”

A 14.5 million sales rate for March would exceed the 13.1 million pace from a year earlier and set an average rate of 14.6 million for the first quarter, ahead of analysts’ estimates for full-year deliveries. Total light-vehicle sales may rise to 1.42 million, the average of eight analysts’ estimates. That would be the highest monthly total since August 2007, according to researcher Autodata Corp.

Analysts at Morgan Stanley, Deutsche Bank AG, Citigroup Inc. and TrueCar.com last month increased their estimates for full-year sales. The four companies increased 2012 estimates by an average of 550,000 vehicles to 14.5 million.

Auto sales gains were probably widespread in March, with General Motors Co. and Toyota Motor Corp. projected to post increases of at least 15 percent.

GM Sales

GM, boosted by the Chevrolet Sonic subcompact that gets 33 miles (53 kilometers) per gallon in combined city and highway driving, may report a 19 percent increase in March sales, the average of 10 analysts’ estimates. GM said yesterday it expects combined sales of at least 100,000 units for its 12 models, including the Sonic, that get 30 mpg or more in highway driving.

Toyota probably increased total sales by 15 percent, according to seven analysts’ average estimate. The Toyota City, Japan-based automaker began U.S. deliveries of its 50 mpg Prius c hybrid subcompact last month. The Prius “family” of four models, including the original hatchback, exceeded 25,000 units in March, a record for the model line, Bob Carter, group vice president of U.S. sales, said yesterday in an e-mail.

Honda Motor Co.’s sales may have increased 5.3 percent, the average of seven analysts’ estimates. Nissan Motor Co. sales may have gained 11 percent, the average of seven analysts’ estimates.

Affiliates Hyundai Motor Co. and Kia Motors Corp. may have combined to sell 18 percent more vehicles than a year earlier, the average of five analysts’ estimates.

Volkswagen AG, which is targeting U.S. sales growth of more than 10 percent this year, may have had a combined boost of 35 percent for Volkswagen and Audi brand vehicles, the average of three estimates.