Ford and General Motors see falling sales in January

US automakers Ford Motor Co and General Motors have both posted sales declines in the first month of the year, as signs suggest that the industry has reached its peak.

General Motors sold 195,909 vehicles in January, compared with the figure of 203,745 that it reached in the same month of 2016. It made for a decline of 3.8% for the period.

GM's decline was larger than industry experts had expected, with a whopping 28% fall in sales of its Buick range.

"In early January, we focused on profitability while key competitors sold down their large stocks of deeply discounted, old-model-year pickups," Kurt McNeil, GM's vice president of sales said in a statement."

Ford's sales were 0.7% lower at 171,186, but saw its retail sales climb by 6%. Fleet sales were where it was affected the most, falling by 13% in January.

It saw a drop in car sales, which was offset by strong sale sin truck and sport utility vehicles. The Detroit carmaker's popular F-series saw an increase of sales by 12.5%.

Ford's car sales were affected by a plunge in demand for its Focus model, one of its traditionally more popular cars, by over 26%.

The motor industry in the US has been under the spotlight in recent months, as new President Donald Trump begins his push to manufacture more products in the country.