Honda Passes Chrysler as Asia Brands Widen Share in the U.S.

Honda Motor Co. passed Chrysler LLC in August to grab fourth place in U.S. auto sales this year as cars won market share from trucks amid an industrywide slump. Asia-based brands led by Nissan Motor Co.'s 14 percent gain raised their share of August U.S. sales to 47.3 percent, beating General Motors Corp., Ford Motor Co. and Chrysler for a fourth month, research firm Autodata Corp. said yesterday. While Toyota Motor Corp. and Honda fell, they dropped less than the U.S. trio.

Tokyo-based Honda may keep the No. 4 spot as a sluggish economy and fuel prices crimp demand for the light trucks that make up more than half of Chrysler's volume. Honda's 2008 U.S. sales are up 1.7 percent, while Chrysler's are down 24 percent.

“Honda and Nissan will likely be the only big automakers that post positive numbers in the U.S. for the calendar year,'' said Jesse Toprak, director of industry analysis for automotive research firm Edmunds.com in Santa Monica, California. “In this kind of economy, with double-digit sales declines for the industry, any kind of gain is a good one.'' Bloomberg