The company reported a 1.8 percent increase in truck sales.

Truck sales were 234,848, down less than a percent from the record level of June 1998.

For the first three months of this year, light truck sales were down even more, to 53.8 percent.

Its total car and truck sales fell 23.7 percent for the month.

And its truck sales, while still small, have more than doubled.

Overall truck sales at Ford were down 17.9 percent, the company said.

The problems for the Japanese companies come at a time when truck sales are growing in numbers and diversity.

The goal was to increase truck sales "from today's 280,000 to 415,000 by 2014".

Ford's car and truck sales in 1990 were 3.63 million, a drop of 7.8 percent from 1989.

Truck sales in the latest period rose 6.7 percent, however, to 72,717.