U.S. Auto Sales Improve in April

U.S. sales of cars and light trucks rose 2.3% in April to 1.18 million vehicles, Bloomberg reported.

The seasonally adjusted annual rate rose to 14.4 million in April, from 13.2 million in March, Bloomberg said, citing Autodata Corp. data.

Chrysler Group LLC’s sales jumped 20% to 141,165 vehicles, while Toyota Motor Corp.’s deliveries rose 12% to 178,044.

Ford Motor Co.’s deliveries fell 5.1% to 179,658 cars and light trucks, and General Motors Co.’s sales fell 8.2% to 213,387.

Adjusted for “selling days” excluding Sundays and holidays, Ford’s sales rose 6.8% and GM’s gained 3.2%.

Honda Motor Co.’s deliveries slid 2.2%, a second consecutive monthly drop, while Nissan Motor Co.’s slipped 0.3%.

Korea-based affiliates Hyundai and Kia Motors Corp. combined to sell 0.9% more vehicles than a year earlier.

Volkswagen AG, on pace to exceed its target for more than 500,000 U.S. sales this year, increased combined sales of its Volkswagen and Audi brand vehicles by 27% in April.