The nation`s automakers Friday reported a 5 percent increase in new-car sales for March, but analysts attributed the industry`s brighter performance to a barrage of buyer incentives.
”March was an easy month because incentives were not as attractive last year,” said Michael M. Luckey, an analyst with Shearson Lehman Brothers in New York.
The eight companies reported combined sales of 682,117 cars in the United States in March, up from 649,351 units a year earlier, when Toyota was not producing cars domestically.
For the month, General Motors Corp. sales were off 4.7 percent, but Ford Motor Co. posted a 17.8 percent gain. Chrysler Corp. sales rose by 6.3 percent from March, 1986, levels.
Among the smaller companies, American Motors Corp. sales were off 56.1 percent. But sales of Honda`s U.S.-built models rose by 87.5 percent because it is building more models than a year ago.
Volkswagen`s domestic-made models showed a 30.3 percent decline, while Nissan posted a 37.7 percent rise. Toyota`s sales totaled 3,455 units.
