Ford Motor Co on Tuesday reported a 3.1-percent increase in sales for July compared to the same month last year.

The rise was led by a surge in pickup sales -- up 39 percent from the same month last year. In July, Ford sold more than 50,000 pickups in one single month, the first time since March 2008.

Overall, Ford continues to have a strong year with sales up 24 percent.

Earlier on Tuesday, General Motors Co reported a 5.4-percent jump in year-over-year sales for July.

GM's four core brands outsold the eight brands the automaker had last year at the same time. For the year, the core brands have seen a 31-percent increase in sales, GM said. This marks the 10th month in a row of sales increases for the four brands.

Ford's new SuperDuty heavy duty truck led the resurgence in pickup sales, with sales up 63 percent compared to July last year.

Mercury sales, however, fell more than 31 percent in July compared to the same month a year ago, but were up 5.7 percent for the year.

Lincoln sales were down 16.3 percent for the month but up 4.1 percent for the year. Volvo, whose sales numbers were part of Ford 's for July, were down 32.9 percent for the month and 10 percent for the year.

Among GM brands, Buick sales were up 60 percent, Cadillac sales up 46 percent, Chevrolet sales up 28 percent, and GMC sales up 18 percent.

Auto executives and analysts expect the US sales figures this year to be between 11.5 million and just under 12 million cars and light trucks.

(Xinhua News Agency August 4, 2010)