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MISSISSAUGA, Ontario — June marked the second straight month of sequential gains in the ADESA Canada Used Vehicle Price Index, as the softening in used prices was not as strong as anticipated.

Specifically, ADESA's data — powered by ALG Canada — indicates that there was a 0.6-point month-over-month rise in the index in June on a seasonally adjusted basis.

"True to ALG's forecast, auction prices continue to show weakness, but not at the level seasonally expected, causing the Index to climb," officials stated

They further noted that although "auction levels held," there was a widespread drop in values, as every wholesale vehicle segment showed month-over-month declines in prices.

Looking at the heaviest of declines, prices for minivans were off 7 percent, a $446 decline, midsize SUVs softened 5 percent, falling $675, and the erosion in full-size pickup values were down 4 percent, off $611.

Off-lease volume/inventory and the new-vehicle market are what officials said is pushing these declines.

"The attractiveness to the Canadian consumer of the new vehicle market with incentives/price adjustments of approximately $14,000 (the full-size pickup segment) made it impossible for some consumers to sit on the sidelines any longer in hopes of a better deal later in the year," they noted.

"It also made the affordability in the used-vehicle arena take a back seat, if you will, to the allure of a new vehicle with substantial price adjustments," officials stated.

In the midst of the bulking up of off-lease volume, this new practice of scattering of new-model launches at various points of the calendar instead of the usual August/September schedule pushes used prices down.

"New-model-year launches are spread throughout the year, as opposed to historically when new-model-year launches typically occurred in the August/September time frame," officials explained. "This yields further, untimely price pressure as the resale market is inundated with prior model years that are continually competing with new-model-year/major redesigns coming to market throughout the year.

"Add to this, the material price adjustments and rate programs in the market today — a rebalancing is near," they added.

Looking forward, projections for July have not changed. There will likely be persistent used-price declines due to factors related to new-vehicle incentives, cross-border shopping and the vacation season.

"Expectation remains unadjusted — July will see further softening as both new-vehicle incentives are expected to remain ramped up continuing to apply price pressure on the Canadian resale market, as dealers/wholesalers continue to source used inventory stateside and as some buyers exit the market on vacation," officials stated.