The top three U.S. sellers blamed extreme weather for poorer-than-expected auto sales in January, as analysts predicted a rebound in February and March. U.S. automakers Ford Motor Co and General Motors Co and Japan’s Toyota Motor Sales USA saw January auto sales plummet, missing analysts’ estimates for the month. But early sales results were mixed for other companies and brands, with Chrysler Group, a unit of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, and Nissan North America reporting increases and topping analysts’ estimates. “The bad weather only seemed to affect our competitors’ stores,” teased Chrysler as it reported double-digit sales increases for its Jeep and Ram truck brands. While snow and bone-chilling weather likely hurt total U.S. auto sales for the month, analysts said any dip in January sales shouldn’t cut into the industry’s months’ long rebound, which has been outpacing the recovery of the overall U.S. economy since the […]