Ford sees weak April auto sales

By David Bailey

DETROIT (Reuters) - U.S. auto sales appear to have fallen further in April after a weak first quarter, and could dip below 15 million units on an annualized basis, Ford Motor Co's chief sales analyst said in an interview on Tuesday.

But the Ford (F.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) executive, George Pipas, told Reuters that the No. 2 U.S. automaker saw signs to suggest the second quarter could mark a bottom for the industry in the world's largest market for cars and trucks.

Pipas cautioned that more uncertainty than usual surrounded that forecast since U.S. consumers were hit especially hard by rising food and fuel costs and tight credit.

April sales in 2007 stalled as gas prices rose and the U.S. housing market weakened further. Automakers, including Ford, are due to report sales results for the past month on Thursday.

Sales will be "noticeably lower" for the industry in April than they were a year ago, Pipas said.

He said the annual rate for U.S. light vehicle sales in the second quarter would likely be lower than the 15.2-million-vehicle rate posted in the first quarter.

The industry could "probably see the slowest sales rate of the year in the second quarter," he said.

The annual U.S. light vehicle sales rate for the second half of the year likely will be higher than the rate in the second quarter, but may not be higher than the rate automakers saw in the first three months of 2008, Pipas said.