General Motors Corp., said it will sell 20,000 fewer vehicles to rental car companies this month, driving down its total sales, Bloomberg reports.

The company's planned decline in low-profit rental sales will reduce its first-half total by 100,000 vehicles, GM sales analyst Paul Ballew recently said. Rental companies get discounts for buying in bulk.

The reduced business with so-called fleet customers such as rental companies makes it harder for Detroit-based GM to halt a seven-year U.S. sales slide and end market-share losses to Asian rivals led by Toyota Motor Corp.

The drop in rental-car business will be ``more moderate' in this year's second half, LaNeve said. Those sales have become increasingly profitable, he said, without elaborating. GM has said it may cut full-year rental sales by as many as 120,000.