Ford's Stock Falls On Heavy Volume After Car And Truck Sales Decline

Shares of Ford Motor Co. dropped 2.9% in very active morning trade Tuesday, after the auto maker reported a sharp drop in car and truck sales in July. Volume topped 19 million shares within the first 30 minutes after the open, already more than half the full-day average, and enough to make the stock the most actively traded on the major U.S. exchanges. Ford said total vehicle sales for last month tumbled 7.5% from a year, as a 19.4% plunge in car sales and a 7.1% slide in truck sales offset a 2.2% rise in SUV sales. Separately, rival General Motors Co.'s stock slid 3% after reporting July vehicle sales fell 14%. Ford's stock has now lost 10.2% year to date, while GM shares have edged up 0.2% and the S&P 500 has gained 10.5%.