Nissan Posts 27% Drop In August Sales

Nissan Motor Co. (NSANY) posted a 27% decrease in U.S. auto sales in August, the first decline since last September, as results a year ago benefited from the "Cash for Clunkers" program. Japan's second-biggest car maker by worldwide sales volume after Toyota Motor Corp. (TM, 7203.TO) reported it sold 76,827 vehicles, down from 105,312 a year earlier and 6.7% lower than the 82,337 units it sold in July. Car-shopping website Edmunds.com expected Nissan would sell 76,900 vehicles. August had 25 selling days, one less than a year ago. The larger Nissan division's sales fell 31%, while Infiniti sales were up 22%. A year ago, Nissan sales inched up while sales of Infiniti, a luxury brand, slumped 30%. Total car sales decreased 39%, while truck sales were up 6.5%. Some notable declines for cars included a 60% drop for Versa, while Sentra and Altima sales fell 50% and 31%, respectively. Meanwhile, the Titan, Xterra, Pathfinder and Armada trucks were among those that notched increases. Auto makers have been seeing rebounding sales for its larger vehicles. Nissan, along with Honda Motor Co. HMC, which outsells Nissan in the U.S., and Toyota TM, snagged a disproportionate share of the clunker trade-ins last year. The company's Versa was among the top 10 list of new cars that replaced clunkers, according to the Department of Transportation. The DOT said Nissan and Infiniti accounted for 8.7% of the vehicles sold during the program.