by Calculated Risk on 10/03/2011 08:48:00 AM

From MarketWatch: Chrysler's U.S. Sept. sales rise 27%

Chrysler Group LLC's U.S. auto sales climbed 27% as the manufacturer posted its strongest September since 2007 and saw double-digit sales increases among its biggest brands.
...
Chrysler ... also estimated the industry's U.S. sales in September at a seasonally adjusted annualized rate of 13.2 million.

The key number for the economy is the seasonally adjusted annual sales rate (SAAR) compared to the last few months, not the year-over-year comparison provided by the automakers. Once all the reports are released, I'll post a graph of the estimated total September light vehicle sales (SAAR) - usually around 4 PM ET.

The consensus is for an increase to 12.6 million SAAR, from 12.1 million in August, however I think we will see a stronger increase based on recent manufacturer and dealer reports. This will probably be the strongest month for auto sales since April (13.13 million SAAR) - before the tsunami in Japan.

I'll add the reports from the other major auto companies as updates to this post.

Update: From MarketWatch: GM U.S. vehicle sales total 207,145 in Sept., up 20%

From MarketWatch: Ford Sept. U.S. sales rise 9%

Weekend:
• Summary for Week Ending Sept 30th
• Schedule for Week of Oct 2nd
• A few preliminary comments on the September Employment Report