Canadian wholesale vehicle market decline picks up pace as van values continue downhill
Image courtesy of Canadian Black Book.
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The Canadian wholesale used-vehicle market’s decline picked up a bit of steam last week and, as usual these days, vans were driving that bus.
According to Canadian Black Book’s weekly Market Insights report wholesale prices sank 0.32% for the week ending May 16, a steeper drop than the previous week. The largest decreases by far were recorded by two van segments — full-size vans were down 1.77% ($569), followed closely by minivans (1.29%, $344).
For full-size vans, that result was the continuation of a six-week trend during which the segment’s average wholesale value has plummeted $3,355.
Curiously, a van segment was also the biggest gainer by far. Compact vans rose 1.46% ($246), a week after falling 1,64% ($281).
Car segments returned to the negative side following a flat week, declining 0.20%. Three of the higher-end segments — luxury cars (down 0.52%, $240), sporty cars (0.41%, $119) and prestige luxury cars (0.28%, $188) — led that drop. On the other end of the spectrum, compact cars (up 0.26%, $40) and subcompacts (up 0.15%, $15) posted small gains, as did premium sporty cars (0.02%, $17).
As wholesale prices were falling last week, few were buying at auctions. After six weeks hovering within sight of the 50% mark — and exceeding it once — last week’s average sale rate sank to 36%. In fact, the highest rate recorded at CBB’s monitored auctions was just 48.7%, with auctions coming in as low at 25.2%.
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In its report, CBB attributed the fluctuations in auction conversions to “political conditions and sellers standing firm on floor prices.”
In the retail market, used-car prices continued their slow, incremental climb, with the 14-day moving average at $37,750.
Canadian Black Book’s Daniel Ross will be among the experts offering insights into the Canadian auto markets during Canada’s Used Car Week, coming up June 16-17 in Toronto.
The U.S. market declined for the first time in 15 weeks, down 0.03% across the board. That coincides neatly with the typical end of the spring market boost, though this year’s spring jump came early. While newer used vehicles lost value, the 8-to-16-year-old segment gained 0.06% with Black Book analysts noting those vehicles hit the positive side a month later than the newer cars.
