New York  - The US automaker Chrysler, the country's third largest and deep in the red, Wednesday said it planned to cut another 1,000 salaried jobs as sales tumbled 22 per cent in the first six months this year.

The company would use "retirements, special programs and attrition," to complete the reductions by September 30, spokesman Dave Elshoff was quoted as saying by Bloomberg financial news.

The job cuts will reduce the salaried workforce by 5.4 per cent. Most cuts will be worked out with settlements, but there may be some who must leave involuntarily, The Wall Street Journal reported.

The company is responding to "an expected prolonging of the current market conditions," Elshoff said.

Germany's Daimler corporation still owns 20 per cent of Chrysler. Daimler sold its majority position in Chrysler to the financial investor Cerberus. (dpa)