August U.S. auto sales stronger than expected on trucks

The U.S. auto industry powered ahead in August, shrugging off gyrating stock markets to stay on pace for the best annual sales since 2001. Early returns on Tuesday indicated sales of about 17.5 million vehicles on an annualized basis, easily besting the forecast of 17.3 million vehicles, according to a Thomson Reuters poll of 47 economists. Roller-coaster stock markets appeared to have no major impact on auto purchases, which are an early indicator of consumer spending each month, particularly f