Three of the biggest sellers of cars and trucks in the United States reported sales totals Friday that reflected the intense squeeze that a global semiconductor shortage has put on auto production.
General Motors and Honda both reported significant declines in sales in the three months ending in September as chip shortages forced them to idle plants, leaving dealers with few vehicles to offer customers.
Toyota had a slight increase for the quarter, but its sales in September fell sharply after it was forced to slash global production because of the chip shortage and other disruptions to its parts supplies stemming from the coronavirus pandemic.
At General Motors, sales were down 33 percent in the quarter. The automaker sold 446,997 vehicles, a sharp decline from the same period last year, when it sold 665,192 light trucks and cars. In the same quarter of 2019, GM sold 738,638 vehicles.
Honda’s sales were down 11 percent in the quarter, to 354,914 cars and trucks. But a decline in September of nearly 25 percent from the prior year showed the increasing squeeze on production.
Toyota said its sales in the quarter were about 1 percent higher than in the year earlier, at 566,005. But its sales for September were down 22 percent.
General Motors does not report monthly sales figures.