Analyst: Dropping SUV Sales Will Cost GM & Ford DETROIT (Associated Press) -


An auto industry analyst says General Motors Corp. and Ford Motor Co. will lose a combined $1.6 billion during the next 18 months due to plummeting sport utility vehicle and pickup truck values.

JPMorgan analyst Himanshu Patel in a note to investors Friday blames the loss on falling residual values for leased pickups and SUVs.

High gasoline prices have caused pickup and SUV values to tumble during the past year. Patel says they dropped 16 to 18 percent from May 2007 to May 2008.

Patel predicts Ford will have $1 billion in lease depreciation costs, and GM will have $600 million because it shares risk with its GMAC financial arm.
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