Steep sales drop for US carmakers

Chrysler and the other big US carmakers have seen sales fall sharply

US carmakers have reported sharp falls in December car sales in another sign of the impact of the economic slowdown.

Chrysler was the worst-hit of the Big Three US car firms with its monthly sales plummeting 53%, when compared with December the previous year.

Ford saw its monthly US sales fall 32%, while General Motors sales dropped 31% - when compared with December 2007.

Worldwide car sales are expected to be down 40% in December, as consumers stay away from car showrooms.

Bigger discounts

However, the steep falls in US car sales have not been limited to US manufacturers.

Toyota and Honda's US sales fell more than their US competitors' in December. Toyota recorded a 37% decline and Honda a drop of 35%.

The plunge in Chrysler's December figures helped to drag its 2008 sales down 30% to fewer than 1.5 million vehicles.

The figures came just days after a US government bail-out to help the cash-strapped carmakers bridge the current financial crisis.

The deals on brand new GM pickups are astonishing, the discount that you get buys a heck of a lot of gasoline Aaron Bragman, IHS Global Insight

Chrysler said some of its losses were due to a significant reduction in fleet sales, which were down 31% for the year as a whole.

In a statement the firm said it would "continue to invest in quality and fuel-efficiency improvements on its current line-up, while developing all-new vehicles for the next generation".

Chrysler has said it will offer discounts of up to $8,000 (