Perhaps the stage is set for another record-breaking milestone in the Canadian wholesale market.

After faltering in February, the Canadian Black Book Used Vehicle Value Index climbed back up to near record levels in March. Now sitting at 105.1, experts said the latest reading is within a tenth of a point of the all-time record high. 

As the Canadian market enters the spring selling season, experts said demand is expected to pick up across the board, with some seasonal strength in the sporty fair-weather car segments.

According to the latest report shared earlier this week, the largest gains since March of last year were the Compact Luxury SUV/CUVs with a “remarkable” 23-point jump in value, although they were down almost a point from last month. 

Experts noted subcompact cars grew in value by 7.4 points and midsize cars posted a strong result with a 3.6-point increase

Compared to February, of this year, Canadian Black Book indicated subcompact Cars rose a “respectable” 1.4 points. Both premium sports cars and full-size vans rose by 1.5 points, according to the latest update.  

Canadian Black Book determined the downside of the price curve included larger, expensive and high-end vehicles, which showed weaker performance year over year. Experts said luxury cars fell 6.6 points in that time and prestige luxury cars softened by 5.9 points.

Experts added the full-size car segment has posted a loss of 4.8 points during the past 12 months.

“Compared to last month, there was very little noteworthy downward activity. The $0.75 Canadian dollar helps to keep the opportunities open for vehicle exports to the U.S. to continue with strength,” Canadian Black Book vice president of research and editorial Brian Murphy said.

The Canadian Black Book Used Vehicle Retention Index is calculated using Canadian Black Book’s published wholesale average value on 2- to six-6-old used vehicles, as a percent of original typically-equipped MSRP. The index is weighted based on used vehicle sales volume and adjusted for seasonality, vehicle age, mileage, condition and inflation (MSRP).

Aggregated from daily vehicle value updates, and captured throughout thousands of wholesale vehicle transactions across the country, the Canadian Black Book Used Vehicle Retention Index represents data across all regions of Canada. The index is based on a comprehensive list of vehicles included in the Canadian Black Book wholesale database.

More details about the latest index update can be found here.