DETROIT – Ford Motor’sAlthough U.S. car sales improved in the third quarter of last year, they fell 27.4% over last year because of a persistent shortage of semiconductor chip.

This drastic fall was less than predicted by auto forecasters but was more than was expected for an industry. between 13% and 14%From the same point last year. Edmunds predicted a decline of 29.3%, and Cox Automotive forecasted that Ford sales would fall by 37.3% in the third quarter.

There is a silver lining: Ford sales rose from losses in July and August of over 30% to 17.7% in September. That indicates better availability of semiconductor chips. The inventory of vehicles also increased to 236,000, an increase of 21,000 units over September’s start.

Ford’s shares were trading higher Monday morning by over 4%

Ford sold 408,843 vehicles during the third quarter. That includes more than 156,000. The company’s October sales were almost 1.4 million. This is a 7% decrease compared to the previous three quarters in 2020.

Ford has made reservations for the upcoming F-150 LightningElectric pickup sales have exceeded 150,000. According to the company, this compares with the 100,000 reserved units at the close of the quarter.