OREANDA-NEWS.  General Motors Co. (NYSE: GM) dealers delivered 284,694 vehicles in the United States in May, up 13 percent compared to a year ago, marking the company’s best May in seven years and its best total sales since August 2008. Retail sales – vehicles sold to individual buyers – were up 10 percent while fleet sales were up 21 percent. GM expects to increase its total market share year over year.

“The momentum we generated in April carried into May, with all four brands performing well in a growing economy and 17 vehicle lines posting double-digit retail sales increases or better,” said Kurt McNeil, U.S. vice president of Sales Operations.

For the month, Chevrolet sales were up 14 percent in total, driven by a 26 percent increase in car deliveries. Buick sales were also very strong, with deliveries up 11 percent in total and 10 percent on a retail basis. Buick had its best May total and retail since 2005. Both Cadillac and GMC had their best May total and retail sales since 2007.

May Sales Highlights (vs. 2013 except as noted)

The seasonally adjusted annual selling rate (SAAR) for light vehicles was an estimated 16.5 million units – the third consecutive month above 16 million.
Cruze was up 41 percent. Chevrolet Corvette deliveries were up 268 percent, Spark sales doubled, Camaro was up 30 percent and Impala was up 23 percent.  Malibu retail sales were up 12 percent.
Retail sales of Chevrolet and GMC large SUVs doubled, while retail sales of the Chevrolet Equinox and GMC Terrain were up 16 percent and 13 percent, respectively.
Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra sales were up for the third month in a row, with May deliveries up 8 percent and 14 percent, respectively.
At Cadillac, sales of the CTS sedan were up 39 percent and Escalade deliveries were up 30 percent. SRX sales were up 27 percent, for the vehicle line’s best May ever.
Buick Encore deliveries more than doubled and Regal sales were up 49 percent.
GM’s average transaction prices (ATPs), including full-size pickup ATPs, were in line with April. Calendar year to date, GM’s ATPs are up about USD 2,700. 
Incentive spending as a percentage of average transaction price was 10.4 percent, down 0.5 points from a year ago, according to J.D. Power PIN estimates. The industry average for May was 9.9 percent. 
Commercial fleet sales were up 21 percent for the seventh consecutive monthly increase and the best month since September 2008. Within commercial fleet, full-size van sales were up 46 percent and full-size pickups were up 35 percent.
Small business deliveries, which are included in retail sales, were up 10 percent.
GM’s fleet deliveries in May exceeded expectations due to the timing of rental customer deliveries, and May will likely represent the company’s highest fleet volume month of 2014. Last year, June was GM’s highest volume fleet month. As a result, GM expects that June 2014 year-over-year fleet sales will be down sharply.

General Motors Co. (NYSE:GM, TSX: GMM) and its partners produce vehicles in 30 countries, and the company has leadership positions in the world's largest and fastest-growing automotive markets. GM, its subsidiaries and joint venture entities sell vehicles under the Chevrolet, Cadillac, Baojun, Buick, GMC, Holden, Jiefang, Opel, Vauxhall and Wuling brands. More information on the company and its subsidiaries, including OnStar, a global leader in vehicle safety, security and information services, can be found at http://www.gm.com

Forward-Looking Statements

In this press release and in related comments by our management, our use of the words “expect,” “anticipate,” “possible,” “potential,” “target,” “believe,” “commit,” “intend,” “continue,” “may,” “would,” “could,” “should,” “project,” “projected,” “positioned” or similar expressions is intended to identify forward-looking statements that represent our current judgment about possible future events. We believe these judgments are reasonable, but these statements are not guarantees of any events or financial results, and our actual results may differ materially due to a variety of important factors. Among other items, such factors might include: our ability to realize production efficiencies and to achieve reductions in costs as a result of our restructuring initiatives and labor modifications; our ability to maintain quality control over our vehicles and avoid material vehicle recalls; our ability to maintain adequate liquidity and financing sources and an appropriate level of debt, including as required to fund our planned significant investment in new technology; the ability of our suppliers to timely deliver parts, components and systems; our ability to realize successful vehicle applications of new technology; and our ability to continue to attract new customers, particularly for our new products. GM's most recent annual report on Form 10-K and quarterly reports on Form 10-Q provides information about these and other factors, which we may revise or supplement in future reports to the SEC.