CHICAGO, Jan. 3 (Xinhua) -- The big three American automakers, General Motors (GM), Ford, and Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA), reported mixed sales performance in 2018, data released on Thursday showed.
The first two posted sales decline, while the FCA saw an increase compared with the previous year.
GM sold 2,954,037 vehicles in 2018, down 1.6 percent from 2017. The company no longer provided monthly sales figures, but it reported that its fourth-quarter sales fell 2.7 percent to 785,229 vehicles.
All four of GM's brands slipped in 2018, with Buick down 5.6 percent and Cadillac down 1.1 percent for the year. Chevrolet was down 1.4 percent as sedan sales for the brand continue to steadily decrease.
Truck brand GMC fared the best, down only 0.8 percent for the year, as sales of the Terrain SUV, Sierra full-size pickup and Canyon mid-size pickup all posted gains.
Ford sales slid 3.5 percent in 2018, with 2.5 million vehicles sold. The company reported that its December sales fell 8.8 percent to 220,774 vehicles.
Ford's car sales dropped 18.4 percent in 2018. The automaker reported F-Series sales increased 1.4 percent last year.
Ford's Lincoln brand sales were down 6.8 percent in 2018. Ford also announced Thursday it would begin reporting its sales results each quarter, rather than on a month-to-month basis, following a change GM made a year ago.
"December capped another strong year for Ford and the industry," Mark LaNeve, Ford's sales chief, said in a statement. "Ford sold more than 900,000 F-Series trucks in 2018 to extend our leadership position to 42 consecutive years as America's best-selling pickup."
FCA reported sales of 2.2 million vehicles last year, a 9-percent increase over a year ago. The automaker said its December sales jumped 14.3 percent to 196,520 vehicles.
Sales rose on the back of Jeep and Ram sales, which were up 17 percent and 7 percent respectively for the year.
"We see sales remaining solid in 2019 and we look forward to expanding our vehicle portfolio with the addition of the much anticipated Jeep Gladiator," FCA Head of U.S. Sales Reid Bigland said in a statement.
