According to action seen in the lanes this past week, wholesale car and truck prices continue to slide.

In the latest “Beggs On the Used Car Market” report, Black Book's Ricky Beggs explained that the trend within the car segments had  a fourth consecutive week of greater than $40 average segment price dips.

Last week, the average segment change for cars was a decline of $48, which was higher than the $43 dip for the previous week.

A year-over-year comparison: during the same period last year, the car segments were seeing an average decline of $31.

The reason behind last week’s bigger price slide? Beggs explained that six of the 10 car segments had greater declines this past week than the previous week.

On the other hand, a few of the car segments touted better retention levels.

The premium luxury cars saw a $9 improvement from two weeks ago, while the entry level cars improved by $10. The entry midsize cars and the upper midsize cars saw a $19 and $41 better change level than the previous week, Beggs reported.

Though trucks showed significant price strength earlier this spring, it seems the tides have turned.

Showing a level of change not seen since the week ending November 16 of last year — when truck segment prices dipped by an average of $65 — the truck’s average segment change matched the level of decline of the cars at $48.

“The trucks have been the more stable market than the cars since the week ending February 15, when the cars changed by -$18 and the trucks at -$19,” Beggs added.

So what stood out in this week’s changes within the trucks?

Pushing the significant average decline, eight of the 14 truck segments Black Book tracks posted their largest declining amount over the past six weeks.

“The second point of interest is the steady and longtime increasing decline within the compact crossover utilities,” Beggs said.

This segment has seen six weeks of declines, with five consecutive weeks touting larger dips in each succeeding week. This past week, the compact crossover utilities saw an average decline of $67.

Also surprising, the midsize pickups saw an average decline of $52.

“Even more surprising was the level of decline within the full-size pickups at $49 following one increasing week wrapped around by four weeks of single-digit declines,” Beggs said.

Beggs also noted that Memorial Day weekend marks a significant sales period for dealerships, but its effects are also seen in the auction market.

Beggs explained that contacts in the market shared that the holiday spurred retail activity and could lead to “a more active wholesale market this coming week to fill many of those empty holes.”

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