The scale of the US car market’s decline became clear today as American car makers posted an 18.8 per cent fall in year-on-year sales. Honda was one of a handful of manufacturers that bucked the declining trend, with US sales up by a significant 13.8 per cent. Notably Mercedes’s US sales also rose 12.9 per cent, its higher-end clientele yet to feel the pinch of rising fuel costs. All manufacturers are blaming the rising cost of petrol for the sales slump, with large high consumption vehicles that have traditionally been popular in America suffering the most dramatic losses. Worse performer was General Motor’s Hummer brand, which saw its sales plummet 60 per cent in a year.
