This year, for the first time, one in three cars and passenger trucks sold in the United States was made by an Asian automaker such as Nissan or Toyota, according to Bloomberg News. Ford, General Motors and Chrysler are creating or redesigning 31 models next year, the most since 1986 -- while the combined market share of U.S. automakers is falling, Bloomberg News said. It was 60 percent for the first 10 months of this year, down from 2002's record low of 62 percent. Their share will fall as low as 53 percent by 2006, forecaster CSM Worldwide Inc. said, in part because U.S. car models have more defects and lower resale values than overseas rivals, Bloomberg News reported. General Motors, Ford and DaimlerChrysler held 77 percent of their home market as recently as 1989, according to Bloomberg News. "I don't really see any scenario right now where they gain market share," said Sasha Kamper, a fixed-income analyst at Principal Financial Group, which holds debt of Ford, General Motors, DaimlerChrysler and Toyota. "They need these models just to defend their current positions." The U.S. automakers' share of the world's biggest car market fell to 8.4 million cars and passenger trucks in the first 10 months, down from 70 percent, or 11 million vehicles, for all of 1998, according to Bloomberg News.
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