Thursday, March 1, 2012

Chrysler says its U.S. sales rose 40 percent last month as all its brands posted strong gains.

The company says February marked its 23rd straight month of sales increases.

Chrysler is the first automaker to report sales on Thursday. Analysts expect a 3 percent increase for the industry. All major automakers but General Motors are expected to report higher sales. Analysts also expect sales to be led by smaller cars due to rising gasoline prices.

Sales of the Chrysler 200 midsize sedan more than quadrupled, while the tiny Fiat 500 had its best sales month ever. Ram pickup sales rose 21 percent.