Car sales from the major automotive manufacturers in the US have yielded a mixed bag of results for the latest monthly statistics, although the overall trend is pointing upwards.

Ford said that its US sales fell in July in comparison to the same month a year earlier, while DaimlerChrysler's sales rose, and General Motors saw a small increase.

GM, the largest American automotive player, saw sales rise by less than one per cent to 459,263, as incentives helped bolster demand.

The second biggest industry player, Ford, saw its sales drop by 4.1 per cent to 285,204 vehicles, while Chrysler sales rose 6.3 per cent to 189,618.

For Nissan July proved a memorable month, delivering a 36 per cent rise in sales, while Toyota enjoyed a 14 per cent hike.

Analysts say that the sales for July are likely to have outperformed June overall - when cars and trucks sold at the slowest pace in six years - with the results also indicating a modest annual rise.

Industry sales stood at an annual rate of around 17.3 million vehicles, up markedly on June's performance, and establishing a small gain from the 17 million cars sold in July 2003, according to Bloomberg.