By Kevin Krolicki 2 hours, 24 minutes ago DETROIT (Reuters) - U.S. auto sales plunged in June, but a month-end clearance sale helped General Motors Corp (GM.N) retain its No. 1 spot and steer clear of the wipeout many had feared, sending its shares climbing.Record gas prices and slumping trade-in values for big trucks and SUVs hit truck sales hard, but industry-wide sales fell by a more limited margin than the most bearish Wall Street forecasts, based on initial sales reports from the automakers.
GM posted an 18 percent decline in sales for June, a month auto dealers, executives and analysts had all warned was on track to become the weakest for the industry in years.
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