U.S. January auto sales stronger than expected

U.S. auto sales appeared to fare better than expected in January as the industry benefited from low gasoline prices, easy credit and moderate economic growth, preliminary results showed on Tuesday. Ford Motor Co's U.S. sales chief, Mark LaNeve, said the last five days of January were strong, helping overcome the snowstorm's effects. General Motors Co, said it expected overall U.S. January sales of 17.5 million vehicles on a seasonally adjusted annualized basis, compared with 17.4 million forecas