U.S. auto sales strong, led by Ford, Chrysler, Nissan

DETROIT (Reuters) - U.S. August auto sales were unexpectedly strong, led by Ford Motor Co , Chrysler Group and Nissan Motor Co <7201.T>, which easily beat analysts' estimates as the industry is seen reaching volumes not seen since before the recession.

Ford sales were up 0.4 percent, while Chrysler, a unit of Fiat SpA , showed a 20 percent gain, the automakers reported on Wednesday. Nissan was up 11.5 percent. Analysts looked for gains of 11.8 percent for Chrysler and 2.8 percent for Nissan, and a decline of 1.9 percent for Ford.

General Motors Co said August sales fell 1.2 percent, narrowly missing expectations.

Chrysler forecast a stronger-than-expected month for the industry, up 3 percent, versus analysts' estimates of a rise of only 0.1 percent.

Auto sales are an early indicator of consumer demand as the industry accounts for one-fifth of all U.S. retail spending.

Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected monthly industry auto sales of about 1.5 million new vehicles, and a seasonally adjusted annualized sales rate of 16.6 million. It would be the sixth straight month showing an annualized rate above 16 million, a level reached only twice in 2013.

Research firm Edmunds.com pointed to two trends affecting August sales: A higher percentage of zero-interest loans and gas prices falling to their lowest in four years.

Incentive spending by the industry last month also climbed from a year ago, to an average $2,772 per vehicle, but declined slightly from July, according to research firm TrueCar.com. Virtually all major automakers except Nissan boosted discounts from a year ago.

Chrysler said U.S. Labor Day weekend sales were "tremendous," which helped to power the automaker to a 53rd consecutive month of year-on-year sales gains.

GM, Ford and Chrysler all reported healthy gains in sales of full-size pickups, which provide the bulk of their profits.

(Additional reporting and writing by Paul Lienert in Detroit; Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe)

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