UPDATE 1-Ford U.S. sales fall 24.2 percent in May

* Ford, Lincoln, Mercury market share highest since 2006

* Three brands post best US monthly sales since July '08

* Ford shares unchanged

DETROIT, June 2 (Reuters) - Ford Motor Co (F.N) said on
Tuesday that U.S. sales fell 24.2 percent in May for all of its
brands as the only U.S. automaker not in bankruptcy reported
its strongest domestic sales month since July 2008.

Ford sales fell to 161,531 vehicles in May, including all
of its brands, from 213,238 vehicles a year earlier. For its
Ford, Lincoln and Mercury brands combined, sales fell 24.3
percent to 155,954 vehicles in May from a year earlier.

The 155,954 Ford, Lincoln and Mercury vehicles sold in May
represented the strongest month for those brands since July
2008.

Ford is among the first of the large automakers to report
U.S. auto sales for May, a day after rival General Motors Corp
(GM.N) GMGMQ.PK filed for bankruptcy protection in New York,
joining Chrysler, which had filed for bankruptcy on April 30.

The automaker said it reduced incentive spending in May,
but believed that the market share for its Ford, Lincoln and
Mercury brands grew to its highest level since 2006.

For those brands, car sales fell 25.5 percent from a year
earlier, crossover sales fell 9 percent, SUV sales fell 37.4
percent and truck and van sales fell 28.7 percent, it said.

Ford said on Monday it had made a small production increase
in North America for the second quarter over its previous plan
and set a third-quarter production plan of 460,000 vehicles, or
42,000 higher than a year earlier.

The automaker said it ended May with inventories of 350,000
vehicles, or a 56-day supply, 210,000 lower than a year
earlier.

Ford shares were unchanged at $6.13 on the New York Stock
Exchange in early afternoon.
(Reporting by David Bailey, editing by Matthew Lewis)