U.S. Nov auto sales could top 11 million annual rate: GM

DETROIT (Reuters) - U.S. auto industry sales could exceed an 11 million vehicle annualized rate in November with signs the economy has continued to strengthen, General Motors Co's GM.UL U.S. sales analyst said on Thursday.

GM also is "cautiously optimistic" that the automaker will see a U.S. market share gain for a fourth consecutive month since it emerged from bankruptcy in July, sales analyst Mike DiGiovanni said in a conference call with reporters.

"We believe the November (seasonally adjusted annualized rate of sales) could approach or maybe slightly exceed 11 million units," DiGiovanni said of the annualized rate closely watched by economists.

GM's forecast included medium and heavy trucks, which can add up to 300,000 to the annualized rate, but was still sharply higher than November light vehicle forecasts Edmunds.com and J.D. Power & Associates released on Thursday.

J.D. Power said it expected U.S. auto industry light vehicle sales at a 10.2 million unit annualized rate in November, while Edmunds expected a 10.34 million unit rate.

DiGiovanni said GM was encouraged by data showing some strengthening in the U.S. economy, while acknowledging rising unemployment and a decline in single family housing starts in October.

"Obviously this isn't a perfectly linear trend. There are some setbacks in some areas," DiGiovanni said. "Overall, we feel pretty confident that the economy is on its way back."

A seasonally adjusted annualized sales rate, or SAAR, at or above 11 million would be the strongest for the industry since September 2008, outside the government "cash for clunkers" program that boosted sales in July and August this year.

In its government-supported reorganization, GM has opted to focus on Chevrolet, Cadillac, Buick and GMC brands. It plans to sell its Saab and Hummer brands and is in the process of shutting down its Pontiac and Saturn brands.

U.S. sales chief Susan Docherty said GM expects U.S. retail sales for its Chevrolet, Buick, GMC and Cadillac brands to be up 10 percent to 15 percent in November from a year earlier.

(Reporting by David Bailey and Bernie Woodall; Editing by Tim Dobbyn, Toni Reinhold)